Abstract

TRADITION, TREND AND PROSPECT OF FERMENTED FOOD PRODUCTS: A BRIEF OVERVIEW.

Rina Rani Ray*and Sonali Roy

ABSTRACT

Fermentation is a process defined as chemical transformation of organic substances into simpler compounds by the action of enzymes. Use of fermented food dates back to prehistoric period and the global scenario of use of fermented food products indicate that it was a popular method of food preservation. The discovery of more and more advantages of utilization of fermented products has generated a new spurt in the application of microorganisms for commercial production of these products. Adoption of various biotechnological approaches, recombinant DNA technology has made these processes more useful and economic. The current trend in context to production and use of fermented food products involves exploration of newer tools and techniques as well as microorganisms to produce newer products of human interest and to increase the shelf life of the products. One of the most important products generated from the microbial fermentation is industrial enzymes. The global market of industrial enzymes indicates that this market is expected to grow to $2.1 billion by 2016. Apart from enzymes, sugars, alcohols, vitamins, amino acids, antibiotics, fermentation product itself can be used as food supplements with beneficial effects on the consumers, known as Probiotics. Utilization of agrowastes or cheap indigenous substrates for the production of fermented products from carefully designed microorganisms can make the entire process cost effective and opens an avenue for safe disposal of discarded biomass and this trend generates great interest among researchers in modern times.

Keywords: Fermentation, fermented food, food preservation, Microbial enzymes, probiotics.