ABSTRACT
Fermentation is one of the most ancient food processing and preservation methods used in the food industry. Raw food materials are transformed through fermentation from perishable, sometimes nonfunctional forms into more stable, functional forms such as milk to cheese and yogurt, grape juice to wine, wheat to bread, barley/malt to beer, and soybean to soy sauce. The fundamental roles of food fermentation include preservation, enhancement of sensory characteristics (”avor, texture, or color), and transformation of nutrients (improvement of digestibility and bioforti…cation) (Cogan and Accolas 1996; Leroy and De Vuyst 2004; Leroy et al. 2006).
