Vitamin A is an essential fat-soluble micronutrient widely used in food and feed sectors to combat deficiency symptoms worldwide and meet nutritional needs, yet its intrinsic oxidative instability continues to challenge product design and shelf-life. Although various delivery strategies, ranging from bulk oils to advanced encapsulation systems, have been employed, its degradation remains difficult to predict. Vitamin A is susceptible to oxygen mediated oxidation, forming epoxides, cleavage products, hydrolysis derivatives, and dimers through mechanisms influenced by environmental factors (light, heat, etc.), matrix composition, and molecular structure. While antioxidants can provide protection, their performance is highly system-dependent, and some compounds may even become pro-oxidant under certain conditions. The design of stable vitamin A formulations is hindered by an incomplete understanding of the fundamental oxidative processes. Most existing studies emphasize radical-driven propagation steps, but emerging evidence suggests that earlier, perhaps non-radical activation events, such as triplet-state excitation and electron-transfer processes leading to reactive species, may play a critical role in initiating degradation. Furthermore, the microstructural organization of formulations, molecular interactions within encapsulating systems, and the potential involvement of concerted pathways have been largely overlooked. These factors may significantly modulate vitamin A reactivity by altering molecular environments and influencing activation energy. A deeper mechanistic understanding of these oxidative initiation processes is therefore essential. Such knowledge would enable the design of next-generation formulations that stabilize vitamin A at its ground state, improving efficacy, safety, and long-term nutritional value. Practical Applications: A better understanding of how vitamin A degrades has direct practical value for the food and feed industries. By identifyin