Food Fermentation Microbiology

sasimalani@msu.edu.my

INTRODUCTION
Industrial microbiology uses microorganisms,
typically grown on a large scale, to produce
valuable commercial products or to carry out
important chemical transformations.
This process is commonly referred to as
Fermentation

DEFINITION OF FERMENTATION
The process of deriving energy from the
oxidation of organic compounds, such as
carbohydrates, using an endogenous electron
acceptor, which is usually an organic
compound

The term fermentation is derived from the latin

verb "fevere" which means "to boil".

FERMENTATION
PROS
Extended shelf life of
food (ex. Cheese)
Eases Digestion (ex.
Wild rice)
New [better] flavours
(ex. Chocolate)

CONS
Can be unpredictable
(i.e. bad bacteria win
the battle)

New [worse] flavours

(ex. Mouldy bread
tastes terrible)

WHAT ARE FERMENTED FOODS?

Foods or food ingredients that rely on

microbial growth as part of their processing
or production

METABOLIC ACTIVITIES OCCUR DURING

FERMENTATION

Extend shelf life by producing acids

Change flavor and texture by producing

certain compounds such as alcohol

Improve the nutritive value of the

product by:
Microorganisms can synthesize
vitamins
Breakdown indigestible materials to
release nutrients, i.e., bound
nutrients

FERMENTED FOODS
Foods fermented by
yeast

MaltBeer
Fruit (grapes) Wine
Rice Saki
Bread dough Bread

Foods fermented by
bacteria

Foods fermented by
mold

Soybeans Soy sauce

Cheese Swiss
cheese

Cucumbers Dill
pickles
Cabbage
Sauerkraut
Cream Sour cream
Milk Yogurt

FOOD FERMENTATIONS
In food fermentations, we exploit
microorganisms metabolism for food
production and preservation.
Where do the microorganisms come from to
initiate the food fermentation?
Two ways to initiate a food fermentation.
...traditional & controlled fermentations

CONTROLLED VS. NATURAL FERMENTATION

Natural fermentation
Create conditions to inhibit undesirable
fermentation yet allow desirable
fermentation

Examples:
Vegetable fermentations
Vegetables + salt

CONTROLLED VS. NATURAL FERMENTATION

Controlled fermentation
Deliberately add microorganisms to
ensure desired fermentation
Example: fermented dairy products

Lactose Lactic acid

Starter culture
Lactics or Lactic starter or Lactic acid bacteria
(LAB)

TRADITIONAL / NATURAL FERMENTATION

Incubation
under specific
conditions

Raw material with

indigenous microflora

Final product

= desirable m/os
= undesirable (pathogen or spoilage) m/os
Disadvantage: Process and product are unpredictable depending on source of
raw material, season, cleanliness of facility, etc.
Advantage: Some flavors unique to a region or product may only be attained this
way.

CONTROLLED FERMENTATION

Add starter culture

Raw material

Incubation
under specific
conditions

Final product
Advantage: uniformity, efficient, more control of process and product
Disadvantage: Isolating the right strain(s) to inoculate is not always easy.
Complexity of flavors may decrease.

CONTROLLED FERMENTATION: STARTER CULTURE

Two main starter culture types are used to

inoculate the raw material:

1.

Pure microbial cultures prepared specifically

for a particular food fermentation.

2.

Backslop method = Using some of the

product from a previous successful
fermentation to inoculate the next batch of raw
material.

CONTROLLED FERMENTATION: PURE CULTURES

Add pure microbial

culture

Raw material

Incubation
under specific
conditions

Pure culture
Final product

CONTROLLED FERMENTATION: BACKSLOP METHOD

Add product (or byproduct)

from a recent successful
fermentation

Raw material

Final product from a previous

fermentation (traditional or
controlled)

Incubation
under specific
conditions

Final product

ANAEROBIC VS. AEROBIC FERMENTATION

Aerobic
Fermentation
Release of energy
from glucose or
another organic
substrate in the
presence of oxygen
CO2, H2O, an energy
produced

Anaerobic
Fermentation
Release of energy
from glucose or
another organic
substrate in the
absence of oxygen
Products: CO2, energy,
and alcohol or various
organic acids

EXAMPLES OF ANAEROBIC FERMENTATION PATHWAYS

Lactic acid fermentation

Found in many bacteria;
e.g. Streptococcus cremoris,
Lactobacillus acidophilus
Mixed acid fermentation
e.g. Escherichia coli
Basis of the methyl red test
2,3-Butanediol fermentation
e.g. Enterobacter aerogenes

Basis of the Voges-Proskauer

reaction

LACTIC ACID FERMENTATION PATHWAYS

MIXED ACID FERMENTATION PATHWAYS

2, 3- BUTANEDIOL FERMENTATION PATHWAYS

TYPES OF FERMENTATION

Bacterial fermentation
Yeast fermentation
Mold and Enzyme fermentation

BACTERIAL FERMENTATION (4 TYPES)

Lactic Acid Bacteria (pickles, sauerkraut)

Acetic Acid Bacteria (vinegar)
Carbon Dioxide Bacteria (Edam, Gouda,
Swiss)
Proteolytic Bacteria (cocoa, chocolate)

LACTIC ACID BACTERIA

Major group of Fermentative organisms.

This group is comprised of 11 genera of grampositive bacteria:

Carnobacterium, Oenococcus, Enterococcus, Pediococcus,
Lactococcus, Streptococcus, Lactobacillus, Vagococcus,
Lactosphaera, Weissells and Lecconostoc

Related to this group are genera such as

Aerococcus, Microbacterium, and
Propionbacterium.

CHARACTERISTICS LACTIC ACID BACTERIA

Lack functional heme-linked electron

transport systems or cytochromes,

They do not have a functional krebs cycle.

Energy is obtained by substrate-level

phosphorylation while oxidising
carbohydrates.

Groups of Lactic Acid Bacteria

The lactic acid bacteria can be divided into two
groups based on the end products of glucose
metabolism.
Homofermentative:
Those that produce lactic acid as the
major or sole product of glucose
fermentation are designated
Heterofermentative:
Those that produce equal amounts of
lactic acid, ethanol and CO2 are
termed.

FAVOURABLE ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS FOR

LACTIC ACID BACTERIAL GROWTH

The lactic acid bacteria are mesophiles:

They generally grow over a temperature

range of about 10 to 40oc,
An optimum between 25 and 35oc.
Some can grow below 5 and as high as 45
oc.

Most can grow in the pH range from 4 to 8.

Though some as low as 3.2 and as high as
9.6.

What are Fermented Foods?

1. Are those foods produced by the modification
of a raw material of either animal or vegetable
origin by the activities of microorganisms
2. Bacteria, yeasts and mold can be used.
3. Diverse range of products that differ in flavor,
texture and stability from the original raw
material.

Benefits of Fermented Foods

Increase in variety of foods available:

Example: 1000 different types of cheeses

Use as ingredients for a variety of dishes:

Example: pepperoni in pizza and cheeses in

many dishes
Health Benefits:

Examples: yoghurt can reduce serum cholesterol

levels and helps avoid cancer

Benefits of Fermented Foods

Improve Digestibility:

Example: People who cannot digest lactose

properly can often consume fermented dairy
products like yoghurts

Detoxification of raw materials:

May remove toxic chemicals found in the

raw material

THANK YOU