Sanni A I
Department of Botany and Microbiology, University of Ibadan, Nigeria.
Int J Food Microbiol. 1993 Apr;18(2):85-95. doi: 10.1016/0168-1605(93)90213-z.
Many papers have been published on various aspects of African fermented foods and beverages. The emphasis has been on the microorganisms used, and the nutritional status of the products after fermentation. The preparation of these products is still a traditional family art and the fermentation process is by uncontrolled inoculation. This has led to variations in the quality and stability of the products. Research efforts in this field are still based on old recipes transmitted from generation to generation due to the fact that the consumers are not easily influenced by innovations, and the apparent lack of biotechnological background. This paper gives a brief account of the fermentation process of some of the fermented products to show the varied pattern of the microbiology. The unpredictability of the complex microflora implicated in the fermentations, and the lack of adequate knowledge of the associated microbes are discussed. The paper suggests a number of steps to be taken to optimize the fermentation process as a means of maintaining the peculiar characteristics of each product and establishment of small-scale industrial production.
关于非洲发酵食品和饮料的各个方面，已经发表了许多论文。重点一直放在所使用的微生物以及发酵后产品的营养状况上。这些产品的制备仍然是一门传统的家庭技艺，发酵过程是通过非受控接种进行的。这导致了产品质量和稳定性的差异。由于消费者不容易受到创新的影响，而且明显缺乏生物技术背景，该领域的研究工作仍然基于代代相传的古老配方。本文简要介绍了一些发酵产品的发酵过程，以展示微生物学的多样模式。讨论了发酵过程中涉及的复杂微生物群落的不可预测性，以及对相关微生物缺乏足够了解的情况。本文提出了一些应采取的步骤，以优化发酵过程，作为保持每种产品独特特性和建立小规模工业生产的一种手段。
