Fermentation-Driven Meat: Microbial Processes for Sustainable Flavor, Safety and Preservation

Dear Colleagues,

Meat fermentation harnesses complex microbial consortia to transform raw substrates into products with distinctive flavor, enhanced safety and extended shelf life—often with lower inputs and fewer additives. As the sector seeks clean-label strategies, resource efficiency and climate-smart preservation, microbial fermentation provides powerful solutions: from bioprotective cultures and bacteriocins to controlled ripening, volatile formation and targeted lipid/protein conversions. This Special Issue invites original research and critical reviews that elucidate the ecology, metabolism and engineering of meat fermentations across traditional and novel systems (e.g., low-salt, nitrate-free and reduced-energy processes). We welcome multi-omics approaches, process design and modeling, validation of safety and shelf-life and consumer-sensory evidence linking microbial activity to quality perception. Studies on valorization of by-products, circular bioingredients and the interface with packaging or mild hurdles are highly encouraged. By integrating fundamental microbiology with practical innovations, this issue aims to chart actionable pathways for sustainable flavor development, robust pathogen control and preservative reduction in fermented meat.

Topics:

• Microbial ecology of fermented meats (culture-dependent/independent, meta-omics).
• Starter, adjunct and bioprotective cultures; consortia design and stability.
• Bacteriocins and other antimicrobial metabolites; mode of action and application.
• Predictive microbiology and risk assessment for fermented meats.
• Flavor generation: amino acid, lipid and carbohydrate catabolism; volatilomics,
• Process optimization: temperature/humidity regimes, ripening kinetics, water activity.
• Clean-label strategies: low-/no-nitrite, low-salt, additive reduction via fermentation.
• Safety validation: pathogen behavior (Listeria, Salmonella, STEC, Staphylococcus), toxins and hurdles.
• Shelf-life extension and spoilage suppression; quality and color stability.
• Fermentation with underutilized species (game, small ruminants), offal and co-products.
• Circularity: valorization of by-products as substrates or bio-ingredients.
• Active/biodegradable packaging interfacing with fermentative metabolites.
• Statistical modeling and machine learning for process control and quality prediction.
• Life-cycle assessment, energy/water footprints and eco-efficiency metrics.
• Consumer studies: sensory profiling, preference mapping, willingness-to-pay, labeling.
• Traditional/regional products and microbiome conservation; PDO/PGI perspectives.
• Regulatory, safety and standardization considerations for fermented meat innovations.

Dr. Luís Patarata
Dr. Fernanda Cosme
Dr. Fernando M. Nunes
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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