{"id":171994,"date":"2026-01-09T17:32:51","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T23:32:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/?post_type=sciencecommunication&p=171994"},"modified":"2026-01-12T16:37:55","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T22:37:55","slug":"climate-and-agave-bagasse","status":"publish","type":"sciencecommunication","link":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/","title":{"rendered":"Agave bagasse also changes with the seasons"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Jimena del Carmen \u00c1lvarez Ch\u00e1vez<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the mezcal industry, agave bagasse is often seen as a homogeneous waste\u2014a byproduct of production that\u2019s unavoidable. But this apparent uniformity is deceptive.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bagasse changes throughout the year. Climate, sunlight, and water availability directly influence the agave\u2019s genetic expression, which in turn affects the composition of bioactive compounds that remain after mezcal production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understanding these variations is not just a scientific matter\u2014it\u2019s an industrial opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A study by the Sustainable Bioproducts group at Tecnol\u00f3gico de Monterrey, which analyzed samples collected across all four seasons of 2023 from three artisanal producers in the State of Mexico, revealed clear seasonal differences in nutrients and antioxidants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The results showed a distinct pattern: warm months favor the accumulation of lipids and proteins, while cold months concentrate carbohydrates and sugars. In summer, lipids reached 11.73% and proteins 5.15%, while in winter these values dropped to 2.03% and 2.26%, respectively.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carbohydrates and total sugars followed the opposite trend, peaking in winter (86.45% and 46.98%) and dropping in summer (74.92% and 14.82%). Reducing sugars were highest in autumn (12.46%), soluble fiber peaked in spring (21.78%), and was lowest in winter (7.80%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That same spring season also saw the highest concentration of antioxidant compounds that protect the plant from environmental stress; total antioxidant capacity was highest in autumn and lowest in winter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These differences are significant<\/strong>. They determine how bagasse can be used. In winter and spring, its high carbohydrate content favors energy applications; in summer, elevated lipids and proteins make it suitable for functional formulations, while spring\u2019s soluble fiber and antioxidants enhance its potential as a prebiotic ingredient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What mezcal leaves behind<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Research on agave is driven by the plant\u2019s bioactive properties\u2014antioxidant, prebiotic, and nutritional\u2014that could benefit human health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Tecnol\u00f3gico de Monterrey, processing technologies like ohmic heating and extrusion have also been explored to maximize the functional value of agave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ohmic heating applies an electric current directly to the material, generating uniform internal heat, while extrusion combines pressure and temperature to modify the material\u2019s structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These techniques increase fiber availability and release simple sugars that beneficial gut bacteria can ferment, reinforcing bagasse\u2019s prebiotic potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, ohmic heating increased soluble fiber in bagasse by 18.3% and total fiber by 41.3%, while also boosting phenolic concentration and antioxidant activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These results suggest that agave bagasse has high potential as a low-glycemic prebiotic ingredient. As fiber content rises, sugar levels decrease. After these treatments, fiber availability and antioxidant potential improve, making it particularly attractive to the food industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Math to make the most of agave<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the study \u201cOhmic heating-assisted pretreatment of agave bagasse to increase bioactive compounds bioaccessibility,\u201d<\/em> predictive mathematical models were developed to optimize ohmic heating conditions and maximize the release and availability of bioactive compounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By precisely adjusting factors like moisture, voltage, and treatment time, the release of bioactive compounds can be optimized. The models demonstrated 90% accuracy, closely mirroring experimental results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This approach shows that mathematical modeling is a powerful tool for refining functional food processes, enhancing both nutritional quality and potential health benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regarding agave bagasse bioaccessibility, in vitro digestion simulations showed that both sugars and phenolic compounds became available for intestinal absorption or fermentation by gut microbiota. This indicates that this agro-industrial byproduct has real potential as a prebiotic ingredient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a context where the food industry seeks to reduce waste, develop functional ingredients, and move toward circular economy models, agave bagasse is no longer just a byproduct\u2014it\u2019s a strategic asset. The key is not only processing it better but also understanding when<\/strong> to do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

References<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. \u00c1lvarez-Ch\u00e1vez, J., Dufoo-Hurtado, E., Santos-Zea, L., & Ram\u00edrez-Jim\u00e9nez, A. K. (2025). Looking into New Sources of Bioactives: Seasonal Variation in Bioactive Compounds and Dietary Fiber of Agave Bagasse from Mezcal Production<\/a>. Foods, 14(9), 1632.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. \u00c1lvarez-Ch\u00e1vez, J., Castrejon, A., Gayt\u00e1n-Mart\u00ednez, M., & Ram\u00edrez-Jim\u00e9nez, A. K. (2025). Effect of Ohmic heating, ultrasound, and extrusion on the bioactive composition and nutritional value of Agave bagasse from Mezcal production<\/a>. Innovative Food Science & Emerging Technologies<\/em>, 100<\/em>, 103897. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. \u00c1lvarez-Ch\u00e1vez, J., Gayt\u00e1n-Mart\u00ednez, M., & Ram\u00edrez-Jim\u00e9nez, A. K. (2025). Ohmic heating-assisted pretreatment of agave bagasse to increase bioactive compounds bioaccessibility<\/a>. Innovative Food Science & Emerging Technologies<\/em>, 104<\/em>, 104076. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Author<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

    Jimena del Carmen \u00c1lvarez-Ch\u00e1vez. Biotechnologist with a specialization in Molecular Biology. She is currently a doctoral candidate at Tecnol\u00f3gico de Monterrey. Her research focuses on turning agro-industrial waste into functional ingredients. She has presented her doctoral research at national and international conferences and has also published science communication articles in TecScience<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    A study shows that climate and seasonal changes alter the levels of nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants in maguey bagasse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":172045,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_eb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[93],"tags":[135],"class_list":["post-171994","sciencecommunication","type-sciencecommunication","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-biotechnology","tag-school-of-engineering-and-sciences"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nClimate Alters Agave Bagasse | TecScience<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A study shows that climate and seasonal changes alter the levels of nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants in maguey bagasse.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Agave bagasse also changes with the seasons\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A study shows that climate and seasonal changes alter the levels of nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants in maguey bagasse.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"TecScience\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-12T22:37:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/climate-and-agave-bagasse.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\\\/\",\"name\":\"Climate Alters Agave Bagasse | TecScience\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-09T23:32:51+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-12T22:37:55+00:00\",\"description\":\"A study shows that climate and seasonal changes alter the levels of nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants in maguey bagasse.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse.jpg\",\"width\":750,\"height\":500,\"caption\":\"The nutrients in agave bagasse\u2014a byproduct of the mezcal industry\u2014vary with the seasons: the study found that warmer months favor the accumulation of lipids and proteins, while colder months see higher concentrations of carbohydrates and sugars. (Photo: Getty Images)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Science Communication\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/science-communication\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Agave bagasse also changes with the seasons\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"TecScience\",\"description\":\"-\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"TecScience\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2022\\\/11\\\/logo-negro-tecscience.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/9\\\/2022\\\/11\\\/logo-negro-tecscience.svg\",\"width\":250,\"height\":38,\"caption\":\"TecScience\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/tecscience.tec.mx\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Climate Alters Agave Bagasse | TecScience","description":"A study shows that climate and seasonal changes alter the levels of nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants in maguey bagasse.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Agave bagasse also changes with the seasons","og_description":"A study shows that climate and seasonal changes alter the levels of nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants in maguey bagasse.","og_url":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/","og_site_name":"TecScience","article_modified_time":"2026-01-12T22:37:55+00:00","og_image":[{"width":750,"height":500,"url":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/climate-and-agave-bagasse.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/","url":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/","name":"Climate Alters Agave Bagasse | TecScience","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/climate-and-agave-bagasse.jpg","datePublished":"2026-01-09T23:32:51+00:00","dateModified":"2026-01-12T22:37:55+00:00","description":"A study shows that climate and seasonal changes alter the levels of nutrients, fiber, and antioxidants in maguey bagasse.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/climate-and-agave-bagasse.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/01\/climate-and-agave-bagasse.jpg","width":750,"height":500,"caption":"The nutrients in agave bagasse\u2014a byproduct of the mezcal industry\u2014vary with the seasons: the study found that warmer months favor the accumulation of lipids and proteins, while colder months see higher concentrations of carbohydrates and sugars. (Photo: Getty Images)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/climate-and-agave-bagasse\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Science Communication","item":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/science-communication\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Agave bagasse also changes with the seasons"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/","name":"TecScience","description":"-","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/#organization","name":"TecScience","url":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2022\/11\/logo-negro-tecscience.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2022\/11\/logo-negro-tecscience.svg","width":250,"height":38,"caption":"TecScience"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sciencecommunication\/171994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sciencecommunication"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/sciencecommunication"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=171994"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sciencecommunication\/171994\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/172045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=171994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=171994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tecscience.tec.mx\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=171994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}