Starter Advances in Beverage and Dairy Fermentation

A special issue of Fermentation (ISSN 2311-5637). This special issue belongs to the section "Fermentation for Food and Beverages".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 1339

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Dairy Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Ege University, Izmir, Turkey
Interests: lactobacillus; milk; microbial

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

This Special Issue, “Starter Advances in Beverage and Dairy Fermentation”, will showcase cutting-edge developments in starter culture technology, innovative fermentation strategies, and emerging scientific approaches to enhance the quality, functionality, and sustainability of fermented beverages and dairy products. By highlighting advances in microbiology, biochemistry, biotechnology, and process engineering, the Special Issue will highlight novel starter formulations, mixed-culture applications, and metabolically driven improvements that can add value to modern fermentation systems.

For this Special Issue, we welcome original research articles, reviews, and short communications addressing, but not limited to, the following topics:

  • Microbial ecology, strain dynamics, and metabolic interactions in dairy and beverage fermentation;
  • Development and characterization of novel starter cultures, functional yeasts, and mixed microbial consortia;
  • Biochemical pathways involved in flavor, aroma, texture formation, and the production of fermentation-derived bioactive compounds;
  • Process optimization, fermentation kinetics, modeling, and quality control strategies;
  • Traditional, artisanal, and industrial fermentation practices for beverages and dairy products;
  • Innovative fermentation technologies, alternative substrates, upcycling approaches, and sustainability-orientated production;
  • Functional, probiotic, and health-promoting properties of fermented beverages and dairy matrices;
  • Advanced analytical tools, multi-omics, and data-driven approaches to fermentation and starter culture research.

Reviews, original research articles, and communications are welcome. The key words and topic list are not exhaustive; please feel free to consult me regarding the suitability of your planned article.

I look forward to receiving your contributions.  

Dr. Oktay Yerlikaya
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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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

  • beverage and dairy fermentation
  • starter cultures
  • yeast–bacteria interactions
  • fermentation metabolism
  • bioactive compounds
  • fermented foods and beverages
  • brewing and dairy technology
  • fermentation kinetics
  • microbial ecology
  • mixed-culture fermentation

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 2451 KB  
Article
Impact of Freeze-Drying on the Viability and Microbial Community Structure of Traditional Mexican Pulque
by Mayrene Sarai Flores Montesinos, Fernando Astudillo-Melgar, Francisco Bolívar and Adelfo Escalante
Fermentation 2026, 12(2), 83; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation12020083 - 3 Feb 2026
Viewed by 1012
Abstract
Pulque is a traditional Mexican fermented beverage produced by the spontaneous fermentation of the sap (aguamiel) produced by several Agave (maguey) species. Pulque fermentation starts with the addition of freshly collected aguamiel (harvested twice daily) into a traditional container known as the tinacal, [...] Read more.
Pulque is a traditional Mexican fermented beverage produced by the spontaneous fermentation of the sap (aguamiel) produced by several Agave (maguey) species. Pulque fermentation starts with the addition of freshly collected aguamiel (harvested twice daily) into a traditional container known as the tinacal, which contains previously fermented pulque serving as a microbial inoculum; the native microbiota associated with both the aguamiel and the inoculum ferments the available sugars, driving the development of the beverage’s characteristic sensorial properties. However, the preservation of its complex microbiota for research, fermentation standardization, and long-term conservation has not been systematically evaluated. In this study, we assessed the impact of freeze-drying on the viability, taxonomic composition, and diversity of the bacterial and yeast communities of pulque across five independent batches. Viable counts revealed no systematic loss of cultivable populations across major guilds. High-throughput sequencing of the V3-V4 16S rDNA and ITS1 regions demonstrated that the global taxonomic structure of pulque is preserved mainly after freeze-drying, with dominant genera, including Lactobacillus, Acetobacter, Zymomonas, Lactococcus, Saccharomyces, and Kazachstania, remaining stable. A modest decrease in richness, without major shifts in community architecture, was observed among minor yeasts, indicating that freeze-drying effectively preserves the core microbiota of pulque. Moreover, preserving pulque biomass safeguards the microbial dimension of this ancestral biocultural resource while enabling future efforts to standardize fermentation and establish microbial biobanks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Starter Advances in Beverage and Dairy Fermentation)
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