Microencapsulation is the process of enclosing tiny particles, droplets, or gas bubbles within thin polymer, lipid, or protein coatings. The food industry uses it to protect sensitive ingredients such as probiotics, omega-3 oils, flavors, vitamins, and enzymes from oxygen, heat, light, and moisture, and to control their release during processing, storage, or digestion. Spray drying, spray chilling, coacervation, extrusion, and liposome entrapment are common methods, each suited to different core materials. Properly encapsulated ingredients keep longer, taste better by masking off-notes, survive harsh food matrices, and enable controlled flavor release, making microencapsulation a core technology of modern functional foods.