4. Factors governing fermentation
1. Temperature
• Bacteria- optimum temperature-20 to 300C
• Thermophiles- 50 to550C
• LAB- 18 to 220C
• Leuconostoc species- 18 to 220C
2. Salt concentration
• LAB – high salt concentrations, begin
metabolism & produces acid
5. Factors governing fermentation
3. Water activity
• Bacteria- high water activity (0.9 or higher)
• Yeast and fungi- lower water activity
4. Hydrogen ion concentration (pH)
• Optimum pH for most m.o.- neutral (7.0)
• Acid tolerant (reduced pH levels)- Lactobacillus and
Streptococcus species
6. Factors governing fermentation
5. Oxygen availability
• Bacteria- anaerobes, aerobes or microaerophilic
(some lactobacilli)
• aerobic fermentations- oxygen is one of the limiting
factors, determines the type, the amount of
biological product obtained , substrate consumed,
energy released from the reaction. Exp- acetobacter
require oxygen for the oxidation of alcohol to acetic
acid
7. Factors governing fermentation
6. Nutrients
• All m.o. require nutrients/ energy
• Fermentative bacteria require carbohydrates-
either simple or complex.
7. Inhibitors
• Chemical compounds can inhibit the growth &
activity of m.os.
• Prevents metabolism, denature proteins,
damage the cell
8. Undesirable changes in food fermentation
i) Vinegar in wine
ii) Proteolysis
iii) Lipolysis
iv) Toxin
v) Odd colours
vi) Odd flavours
vii) Bad odours
10. Types of bacterial food fermentation
2. Acetic acid fermentation
• Vinegar from fruit juices and alcohols
• acetic acid bacteria/ acetobacter- convert alcohol to
acetic acid in the presence of oxygen
Alcohol acetic acid + water
11. Types of bacterial food fermentation
3. Alkaline fermentation
• With protein rich foods. Exp soybeans, legumes and
also plant seeds
• Bacillus species- Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus pumilus etc.
• Bacillus subtilis is the dominant species causing
hydrolysis of protein which increases the alkalinity of
the substrate.
• Provide protein rich, low cost foods from leaves,
seeds and beans
12. Types of bacterial food fermentation
Principle of alkaline food fermentation
13. Types of fermentation based on culture media
A. Solid-state fermentation
• m.os. grow on a moist solid with little or no ‘free
water’
• Example- mushroom cultivation, bread making,
manufacture of miso (soy paste), tempeh (soy cake),
gari (cassava) etc.
• Subdivided into aerobic (koji fermentation) &
anaerobic (sausage production by acid-forming
bacteria) process
14. Types of fermentation based on culture media
B. Submerged fermentation
• May use a dissolved substrate, suspended in large
amount of water
• e.g. pickling vegetables, producing yogurt, beer, wine
& soy sauce
• Subdivided into aerobic (citric acid production by
Aspergillus niger) & anaerobic (yogurt) process
Editor's Notes
glutinous rice: low amylose content, sticky when cooked
All chemical reactions that occur in living cells including digestion, divided into catabolism & anabolism
Hydrolysis of tryglycerides into glyserol and free fatty acids
water melon seeds (Ogiri in Nigeria) and sesame seeds (Ogiri-saro in Sierra Leone) and others where coconut and leaf proteins are the substrates (Indonesian semayi and Sudanese kawal respectively).
Soy proteins are sequentially hydrolyzed into peptides, amino acids, and
ammonia. Due to release of ammonia, the pH of thua nao
rapidly reaches as high as 8 (or even higher). This alkaline nature not
only provides a selective condition for certain bacteria (i.e., Bacillus
spp.) but also causes difficulty for other microbes to grow. Ammonia
is considered as a major chemical causing a strong smell to the product.