Microbiology and Food Hygiene

A special issue of Fermentation (ISSN 2311-5637). This special issue belongs to the section "Fermentation Process Design".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2017) | Viewed by 59368

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Laboratory of Food Quality Control and Hygiene, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Agricultural University of Athens, Iera Odos 75, GR-118 55 Athens, Greece
Interests: microbiological quality and safety of foods; food safety and quality management systems; microbial ecology of fermented foods; meat microbiology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fermentation is a natural preservation process. Food substrata via fermentations are transformed to new ecosystems. Fermentation constructs hurdles against pathogenic microorganisms. In that sense, it is inextricably linked with the product hygiene. The scope of this Special Issue is for researchers to present contributions on the microbial ecology of fermented products of plant and animal origins. Fermented products are not studied in detail worldwide. Especially in underdeveloped and developing areas, there are products of which microbial ecology is not described with new scientific tools. The microbiota in these cases should be characterized in addition to their phenotypical attributes with molecular microbiology techniques. In developed countries there are also traditional products that should be studied further. The influence of these microbiota and the conditions that prevail during the ‘creation’ of such fermented man-made ecosystems, with respect to their safety, are of paramount importance. Food businesses should comply with microbiological criteria established by regulatory authorities. Shelf life studies, based on microbiological safety and quality, are a prerequisite. Challenge test, antimicrobial activity of autochthonous microorganisms and the influence of the environment, the intrinsic and extrinsic determinants are included in such studies. Modeling microorganisms is also a key tool for predicting products safety.

Prof. Dr. Eleftherios H. Drosinos
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fermentation is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • food safety
  • fermented foods
  • antimicrobial activity
  • shelf life
  • HACCP
  • modelling
  • characterization
  • food safety management systems

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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1375 KiB  
Article
Production and Quality Analysis of Wine from Honey and Coconut Milk Blend Using Saccharomyces cerevisiae
by Tochukwu V. Balogu and Oyinloye Towobola
Fermentation 2017, 3(2), 16; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation3020016 - 26 Apr 2017
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 11430
Abstract
Honey is a high-sugar jelly-like substance produced by bees from flower nectar, and coconut milk is the creamy (rich in fat and minerals) extract of coconut meat (endosperm). Studies on honey-fruit wines are scant, and mostly documented in unpublished or personal blogs. This [...] Read more.
Honey is a high-sugar jelly-like substance produced by bees from flower nectar, and coconut milk is the creamy (rich in fat and minerals) extract of coconut meat (endosperm). Studies on honey-fruit wines are scant, and mostly documented in unpublished or personal blogs. This study produced honey–coconut wine using Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Honey slurry (HS, a 100% diluted honey) was mixed with undiluted coconut milk (CM) at varying ratios to obtain six wine (W) versions (HS:CM) designated as WA (1:1), WB (1:2), WC (2:1), WD (3:1), WE (1:3), and control was coded as CTRL (1:0). Each version (1800 mL) was inoculated with 200 mL (~6.0 log10 cfu/mL) of S. cerevisiae, fermented (25 ± 2 °C) for 60 days, degassed and agitated every 2 days, pasteurized to stop fermentation, and clarified by siphoning the supernatant. Irrespective of the wine version, the optimum range of microbial growth and duration for HS-CM wines were 8.1–8.2 log10 cfu/mL and 25–30 days respectively. Most enological (pH, total acidity, and free SO2) and physicochemical (temperature and fermentation velocity) parameters were relatively stable across all wine versions. However, fermentative capacity and degree, and alcoholic and caloric contents were proportional to the quantity of HS. Sensory rating of wines by 50 assessors were in the decreasing order of CTRL > WC > WD > WA > WE > WB. Conclusively, honey–coconut wines are acidic wines and could be dry or semi-sweet wines, low to high alcoholic wines, or very low to moderate caloric wines, depending on the quantity of honey added. This study observed a correlation of more than 95% precision between wine compositions (HS:CM) and wine qualities (alcoholic and caloric contents). Thus, models of enological parameters would enhance HS-CM winemaking process. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbiology and Food Hygiene)
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1977 KiB  
Article
Yeast Diversity and Physicochemical Characteristics Associated with Coffee Bean Fermentation from the Brazilian Cerrado Mineiro Region
by Dão Pedro De Carvalho Neto, Gilberto Vinícius De Melo Pereira, Valcineide O. A. Tanobe, Vanete Thomaz Soccol, Bruno José G. da Silva, Cristine Rodrigues and Carlos Ricardo Soccol
Fermentation 2017, 3(1), 11; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation3010011 - 16 Mar 2017
Cited by 64 | Viewed by 11810
Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the yeast diversity and physicochemical characteristics of spontaneous coffee bean fermentation conducted in the coffee-producing region in Cerrado Mineiro, Brazil. During 48 h of fermentation, yeast population increased from 6.60 to 7.89 log CFU·g−1 [...] Read more.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the yeast diversity and physicochemical characteristics of spontaneous coffee bean fermentation conducted in the coffee-producing region in Cerrado Mineiro, Brazil. During 48 h of fermentation, yeast population increased from 6.60 to 7.89 log CFU·g−1, with concomitant pulp sugar consumption and organic acids production (mainly lactic (3.35 g·L−1) and acetic (1.27 g·L−1) acids). According to ITS-rRNA gene sequencing, yeast population was mainly represented by Saccharomyces sp., followed by Torulaspora delbrueckii, Pichia kluyveri, Hanseniaspora uvarum, H. vineae and Meyerozyma caribbica. SPME-GC-MS analysis revealed a total of 25 volatile organic compounds with predominance of hydrocarbons (9 compounds) and higher alcohols (6 compounds). The resulting fermented, roasted coffee beans were analyzed by diverse chemical analysis methods, including Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and mineral and thermogravimetric analysis. The thermal decomposition of the coffee beans occurred in four stages between 90 and 390 °C, with significant mass loss (68%) after the second stage at 190 °C. FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the presence of the main organic functions associated with coffee aroma, such as aromatic acids, ketones, aldehydes and aliphatic esters. The results presented in this study enrich our knowledge concerning yeast diversity and physicochemical characteristics associated with coffee bean fermentation, and can be used to promote a controlled on-farm processing. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbiology and Food Hygiene)
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Review

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277 KiB  
Review
Spontaneous Food Fermentations and Potential Risks for Human Health
by Vittorio Capozzi, Mariagiovanna Fragasso, Rossana Romaniello, Carmen Berbegal, Pasquale Russo and Giuseppe Spano
Fermentation 2017, 3(4), 49; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation3040049 - 28 Sep 2017
Cited by 137 | Viewed by 15891
Abstract
Fermented foods and beverages are a heterogeneous class of products with a relevant worldwide significance for human economy, nutrition and health for millennia. A huge diversity of microorganisms is associated with the enormous variety in terms of raw materials, fermentative behavior and obtained [...] Read more.
Fermented foods and beverages are a heterogeneous class of products with a relevant worldwide significance for human economy, nutrition and health for millennia. A huge diversity of microorganisms is associated with the enormous variety in terms of raw materials, fermentative behavior and obtained products. In this wide microbiodiversity it is possible that the presence of microbial pathogens and toxic by-products of microbial origin, including mycotoxins, ethyl carbamate and biogenic amines, are aspects liable to reduce the safety of the consumed product. Together with other approaches (e.g., use of preservatives, respect of specific physico-chemical parameters), starter cultures technology has been conceived to successfully dominate indigenous microflora and to drive fermentation to foresee the desired attributes of the matrix, assuring quality and safety. Recent trends indicate a general return to spontaneous food fermentation. In this review, we point out the potential risks for human health associated with uncontrolled (uninoculated) food fermentation and we discuss biotechnological approaches susceptible to conciliate fermented food safety, with instances of an enhanced contribution of microbes associated to spontaneous fermentation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbiology and Food Hygiene)
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205 KiB  
Review
Microbiological Exploration of Different Types of Kefir Grains
by Stavros Plessas, Chrysanthi Nouska, Ioanna Mantzourani, Yiannis Kourkoutas, Athanasios Alexopoulos and Eugenia Bezirtzoglou
Fermentation 2017, 3(1), 1; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation3010001 - 23 Dec 2016
Cited by 68 | Viewed by 19495
Abstract
Many studies have been published lately verifying the probiotic character of kefir grains. Most of them focused on the benefits to human health through the consumption of fermented food with kefir grains. However, the challenge is to characterize and isolate specific probiotic microorganisms [...] Read more.
Many studies have been published lately verifying the probiotic character of kefir grains. Most of them focused on the benefits to human health through the consumption of fermented food with kefir grains. However, the challenge is to characterize and isolate specific probiotic microorganisms involved in the kefir microbiota. The main reason for this is that the food industry prefers to apply isolated probiotic microorganisms from kefir grains rather than kefir grains in order to produce respective fermented products with added value. Thus, modern molecular techniques such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based amplification, new generation sequencing (NGS) or denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analyses have been applied. Furthermore, this review emphasizes the latest outcomes regarding the health benefits of the consumption of foods fermented with kefir grains and particularly the isolation of microorganisms from kefir grains worldwide, some of them exhibiting probiotic properties. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbiology and Food Hygiene)
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