Fermentation - the power of microorganisms inherited for thousands of years

Traditional fermented foods that have been passed down for thousands of years are an important carrier of Chinese food culture

Microbial strains are an important resource for the fermented food industry

Before the invention of refrigerators and modern sterilization technology, humans mainly relied on three methods of air-drying, pickling and fermentation to prolong the preservation time of food, but air-drying can easily make food hard due to dehydration; become too salty

Microbial strains for food are an important resource in the traditional fermented food industry

Yao Su said that traditional fermented food strains have the following identification principles: have a clear taxonomic status and scientific name; have an exact history of safe use; no clinical pathogenic risk and opportunistic infection risk, no toxic metabolism It has a clear application field; it plays a functional role beneficial to fermentation in food production

In 2017, Yao Su's team released the "List of Microbial Species for Traditional Chinese Fermented Foods" (hereinafter referred to as the "List") for the first time; Kimchi, watercress, fermented tea, bread, steamed bread, natto, meat products, 13 food fields, a total of 56 genera and 124 species of microorganisms, including 74 species of bacteria, 22 species of yeast, and 28 species of filamentous fungi

The "List" analysis expounds the main functions of the strains in key fermentation processes: 1.

Zhang Heping, a professor at Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, said that food fermentation not only makes delicious food, but also brings many health benefits

Excellent strains ensure food quality

"The change of season and environment has a great impact on fermented food, and the stability of the flora can ensure the stability of the fermentation ecosystem, thereby ensuring the stability of the production process and ultimately the stability of the product flavor, so it is very important to breed strains with excellent performance.

Acetobacter, for example, is widely found in various plants (fruits, grains, herbs, etc.

Excellent acetic acid fermentation strains should not only have high ethanol oxidation capacity, but also have good acetic acid tolerance

Chi Yuanlong, an associate professor at Sichuan University, also believes that the selection and breeding of microorganisms is very important

According to Chi Yuanlong, his team took samples from 30 provinces and cities, collected more than 2,000 kinds of kimchi samples, analyzed more than 100 product formulas and process parameters, isolated and identified more than 4,000 strains, and screened 396 strains, including 36 genera and 89 species.

　　(Wang Jiayi and Liu Yanfang)

　　"China Food News" (August 22, 2022 06 edition)

　　(Editor-in-charge: Yang Xiaojing)