Bael (Aegle marmelos), an Underutilized Fruit with Enormous Potential to Be Developed as a Functional Food Product: A Review

In South Asia, a fruit often known as Bael is a valuable medicinal plant, which is scientifically named Aegle marmelos. Not just the fruits but also the leaves, stems, bark, and roots are used in traditional medicine. Since ancient times, the plant has been used to treat a variety of chronic illnesses. Several scientific investigations have confirmed the nutritional and medicinal properties of plant-derived compounds. Global concern about the role of eating habits and health has increased the interest in plant-derived nutraceuticals; thereby, the functional attributes of such underutilized fruits are being explored which have an enormous potential to be developed as a functional product for the food processing industry. The present review emphasizes scientific data on the nutritional and bioactive composition of the fruit along with its pharmacological activities. Furthermore, this study also discussed fruit processing technology and innovation in the development of potential functional products derived from the fruit.