The chemical reactions and pathways resulting in the formation of apocarotenoids by the oxidative cleavage of carotenoids. Many apocarotenoids are biologically important e.g. retinal and abscisic acid.
apocarotenoid catabolic process +
isopentenyl diphosphate biosynthetic process +
isoprenoid biosynthetic process via 1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate