Fermented Cereals and Legumes: Innovation for the Development and Characterization of Functional Foods
A special issue of Fermentation (ISSN 2311-5637). This special issue belongs to the section "Fermentation for Food and Beverages".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2026 | Viewed by 3143
Special Issue Editor
Interests: plant-based foods; fermented beverages; phenolic compounds; food bioactivity; bioaccessibility; bioavailability of bioactives
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Fermentation of cereals and legumes has emerged as a versatile biotechnological strategy to enhance the nutritional, sensory, and functional qualities of plant-based foods. These substrates provide rich carbon and nitrogen sources that sustain diverse microbial communities, including lactic acid bacteria, yeasts, and other beneficial microorganisms. Through their metabolic activity, these microbes degrade antinutritional factors such as phytic acid, tannins, and enzyme inhibitors, while improving the bioavailability of minerals and amino acids. Fermentation also promotes the release and transformation of bioactive compounds with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and gut-modulatory properties, contributing to better metabolic and intestinal health. A wide range of fermented products, including bread, snacks, sauces, and beverages derived from cereals and legumes, represents promising vehicles for developing sustainable, functional foods. This Special Issue aims to advance understanding of the microbial functionality and biochemical mechanisms driving cereal- and legume-based fermentations, and to explore their implications for nutritional quality, product innovation, and human well-being.
Papers dealing with or working on the following topics are invited to publish the following:
- Characterization of lactic acid bacteria, yeasts, or mixed cultures in cereal/legume fermentations;
- Nutritional and functional enhancement through fermentation (proteins, phenolic compounds, bioactive peptides);
- Reduction of antinutritional factors;
- Bioavailability and bioaccessibility studies after fermentation;
- Omics approaches to study fermentation microbiota and metabolites;
- Development of novel fermented cereal- and legume-based foods.
- Sustainability and circular bioeconomy perspectives in fermented plant-based systems.
Dr. Franco Van de Velde
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fermentation is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- cereal fermentation
- legume fermentation
- lactic acid bacteria
- phenolic compounds
- bioaccessibility
- sustainable food systems
- circular bioeconomy
- plant-based beverages
- functional foods
- product innovation
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