Application of friendly bacteria in the food industry
The EC-funded SAFETYSAUSAGE project aimed to isolate protective strains of bacteria, useful in the sausage production process. These strains were aimed to have a deleterious effect against an array of known food-borne pathogens that can affect the sausage products. The project partners collaborated on the identification of these strains and a central collection was indeed realised. A total of 900 strains of lactic acid bacteria were identified from naturally fermented products from a number of countries. The bacteria underwent biochemical and molecular identification. The researchers are keen to exploit their potential application in the production of other food products as well. The main use of these bacteria would be aimed towards the improvement of the overall quality and the reduction of additives. However, complete identification of the bacterial profiles has to be completed through a series of partnerships with academia or the private sector.
