Fermentation Processes: Emerging and Conventional Technologies

Mohamed Koubaa, Francisco J. Barba, Shahin Roohinejad, Mohamed Koubaa, Francisco J. Barba, Shahin Roohinejad

• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
• Year: 2021
• Print ISBN: 9781119505853
• eBook ISBN: 9781119505839
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Food Science
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Explores the use of conventional and novel technologies to enhance fermentation processes

Fermentation Processes reviews the application of both conventional and emerging technologies for enhancing fermentation conditions, examining the principles and mechanisms of fermentation processes, the microorganisms used in bioprocesses, their implementation in industrial fermentation, and more. Designed for scientists and industry professionals alike, this authoritative and up-to-date volume describes how non-conventional technologies can be used to increase accessibly and bioavailability of substrates by microorganisms during fermentation, which in turn promotes microbial?growth and?can improve processes and?productivity across the agri-food, nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, and beverage industries.

The text begins by covering the conventional fermentation process, discussing cell division and growth kinetics, current technologies and developments in industrial fermentation processes, the parameters and modes of fermentation, various culture media, and the impact of culture conditions on fermentation processes. Subsequent chapters provide in-depth examination of the use of emerging technologies—such as pulsed electric fields, ultrasound, high-hydrostatic pressure, and microwave irradiation—for biomass fractionation and microbial stimulation. This authoritative resource:

• Explores emerging technologies that shorten fermentation time, accelerate substrate consumption, and increase microbial biomass
• Describes enhancing fermentation at conventional conditions by changing oxygenation, agitation, temperature, and other medium conditions
• Highlights the advantages of new technologies, such as reduced energy consumption and increased efficiency
• Discusses the integration and implementation of conventional and emerging technologies to meet consumer and industry demand

Offers perspectives on the future direction of fermentation technologies and applications Fermentation Processes: Emerging and Conventional Technologies is ideal for microbiologists and bioprocess technologists in need of an up-to-date overview of the subject, and for instructors and students in courses such as bioprocess technology, microbiology, new product development, fermentation, food processing, biotechnology, and bioprocess engineering.

1
Introduction to Conventional Fermentation Processes

Mohamed Koubaa

ESCOM, UTC, EA 4297 TIMR, Compiègne, France

1.1 Bioprocesses

Bioprocesses represent all the methods and techniques that use microbial, plant, or animal cells or their components (e.g. enzymes, proteins, genes, etc.) for the production of goods and services (Sindhu et al. 2017). Bioprocess technology is, in fact, an extension of the ancestral techniques used at the time to develop useful products (Kalaichelvan and Pandi 2019). Nowadays, microbial cells are not only used in common processes, such as for the production of alcoholic beverages (e.g. wine, beer, etc.) or dairy products (e.g. yogurt, cheese, etc.), but also to produce a wide diversity of complex molecules. In this sense, bioprocesses find many traditional or new applications in the following industries:

• Agri‐food industry: production of animal proteins, amino acids, fermented foods and beverages, vitamins, enzymes, etc.
• Chemical industry: production of organic acids, ethanol, solvents, polymers, biogas, etc.
• Pharmaceutical industry: production of antibodies, vaccines, hormones, plasmids, steroids, etc.
• Environmental industry: decontamination of wastewater, air, and soil; development of agricultural and industrial by‐products, etc.

In this respect, bioprocesses are exploited in three specific fields: fermentation processes, animal and plant cell cultures, and environmental bioprocesses. This chapter will mainly focus on conventional fermentation processes.

Most of the methods and techniques used in bioprocesses are based on fermentation technology. This is not surprising since the first ancestral processes were based on microbial fermentation. For most people, fermentation simply refers to the production of alcohol (beer and wine) or the deterioration of food by microorganisms (curd). Nevertheless, the word fermentation takes on a broader common industrial meaning. It is any process for producing a substance or biomass of cells on a large scale by using the culture of a microorganism, in aerobic or anaerobic conditions.

To be able to carry out these fermentations, it is imperative to cultivate microorganisms in tanks equipped with a certain number of more or less sophisticated systems; these tanks are called fermenters or bioreactors. Their role is to provide a controlled environment for optimal growth of microbial cells throughout the culture by constantly stirring the medium, infusing sterile air – in the case of aerobic fermentation – and controlling the temperature and pH of the fermentation broth. By using these tanks, contamination by other microorganisms is avoided by constantly maintaining asepsis conditions.

The first modern fermenters were designed in the 1950s to support the industrial production of penicillin and other newly discovered antibiotics. Since then, they have been able to control several other types of crops and to substantially increase the quantity of products marketed in each of the three fields of application of industrial bioprocesses mentioned above. Six major groups of products could then be obtained by fermentative processes, namely the production of (i) microbial biomass, (ii) microbial metabolites, (iii) microbial enzymes, (iv) recombinant proteins, (v) microbial plasmids, and (vi) bioconversion.

1.1.1 Production of Microbial Biomass

Commercial production of microbial biomass can be divided into two major processes: the production of viable microorganisms used primarily for fermentative applications (Vitorino and Bessa 2017) and the production of microbial cells, usually dead, that can serve as protein‐rich supplements (Matassa et al. 2016).

In the first case, we can cite several examples: the production of bakery yeasts for the production of bread, the production of yeasts to perform alcoholic fermentation (e.g. beers, wines, spirits, etc.), and the production of lactic acid bacteria for the manufacturing of cheese, yogurt, fermented meats (i.e. sausages), or fermented vegetables (e.g. sauerkraut, marinated pickles, etc.). Some food supplements composed of live lactic acid bacteria, also called probiotics, are produced by fermentation. They can be defined as live microorganisms, and the adequate amounts of them supply a health benefit to the host (Otles and Ozyurt 2019). Their role is to exert a beneficial effect by improving the quality of the intestinal flora. These microorganisms are usually supplied as a lyophilized powder in hermetically sealed sterile bags or containers. Generally, the name of ferments is given to microorganisms that serve to start a fermentation process (Koutinas 2017). Some microbial strains such as the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, whose spores produce a very effective toxin against pest larvae (biological insecticide), are also grown.

In the second case, it is a question of producing microbial biomass to exploit the nutritional potential of the proteins that it produces (Matassa et al. 2016). This biomass is incorporated into prepared foods to increase their protein content without significant fat intake, which improves their nutritional quality. The yeast Candida utilis is mostly used as a dietary supplement because of its exceptionally high protein content (50–55% of dry weight). This yeast can be used as a valuable raw material to produce various preparations enriched with valuable bioelements (e.g. selenium, magnesium, etc.). The use of such preparations in the human diet provides an interesting alternative to classical, pharmacological supplementation and prevents deficits of important elements, while their addition to feedstock significantly improves the results of animal production (Kieliszek et al....

Table of contents

• Cover
• Table of Contents
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• About the Editors
• List of Contributors
• Preface
• 1 Introduction to Conventional Fermentation Processes
• 2Current Developments in Industrial Fermentation Processes
• 3 Culture Condition Changes for Enhancing Fermentation Processes
• 4 Emerging Technologies and Their Mechanism of Action on Fermentation
• 5 Biomass Fractionation Using Emerging Technologies
• 6 Enhancing Microbial Growth Using Emerging Technologies
• 7 Application of Fermentation to Recover High‐Added Value Compounds from Food By‐Products
• Index
• End User License Agreement