Development of Chitosan-Stabilized Pickering Emulsions Loaded with Supercritical Fluid Extraction of Honey Bee Pollen for Functional Food Applications

Honey bee pollen (HBP) is a nutritionally rich natural product containing phenolics and antioxidants; however, its rigid outer wall limits the bioavailability of these bioactive compounds. Therefore advanced extraction and delivery systems are required to enhance stability and functional performance for food applications. This study aimed to encapsulate a supercritical fluid extract (SFE) of honey bee pollen within chitosan-stabilized Pickering emulsions in order to improve encapsulation efficiency and antioxidant activity. Honey bee pollen obtained from Bingöl, Türkiye, was extracted with supercritical CO₂. Pickering emulsions were prepared via ultrasound-assisted emulsification in the presence of chitosan as a stabilizer, with SFE-HBP at 5%, 10%, and 15% (w/v). The prepared emulsions were characterized for their microstructure, particle size, zeta potential, and encapsulation efficiency. Total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activities were assessed using the Folin–Ciocalteu and CUPRAC assays, respectively. All formulations yielded stable, uniformly distributed Pickering emulsions with spherical droplets and no visible phase separation. Indeed, encapsulation efficiency increased with increasing SFE-HBP concentration, from 73.96% to 87.06%. The particle size ranges (7.22–12.44 µm) and zeta potential values (+21.73 to +28.24 mV) indicate good colloidal stability. For both TPC and CUPRAC antioxidant activities, a concentration-dependent increase was observed, with the highest values in the 15% SFE-HBP-containing emulsions. Collectively, these findings indicate that a chitosan-based Pickering emulsion is an effective delivery system for SFE-derived bioactive compounds from honey bee pollen. The method provides enhanced encapsulation efficiency, antioxidant capacity, and physicochemical stability, hence exhibiting great potential for functional food and nutraceutical applications.