{"id":13518,"date":"2022-02-16T19:20:09","date_gmt":"2022-02-16T11:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thefooduntold.com\/?p=13518"},"modified":"2023-03-11T18:05:51","modified_gmt":"2023-03-11T10:05:51","slug":"lactic-acid-fermentation-an-overview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thefooduntold.com\/food-science\/lactic-acid-fermentation-an-overview\/","title":{"rendered":"Lactic Acid Fermentation: An Overview"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Studies in history have found that humans first started fermenting foods as early as 6000 B.C in the Fertile Crescent (crescent-shaped region in the Middle East). However, fermentation was a poorly understood method back then. It was until the mid-19th century when French scientist Louis Pasteur showed how fermentation works. In a series of experiments he performed, he proved that fermentation of food occurs in the presence of certain microorganisms. In 1877, through years of studies on fermentation, he published his famous book, Etudes sur la Bi\u00e8re<\/em> (Studies on fermentation). One of the key findings in his studies is that lactic acid is produced by microorganisms (bacteria) in lactic acid fermentation. Based on Pasteur’s findings, many studies have followed, which have allowed us to have a better understanding of fermentation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, fermentation can be classified into 3 types. These include lactic acid fermentation, alcoholic fermentation, and acetic fermentation. Sure, fermentation is quite a topic. So in this blog post, we’ll cover lactic fermentation, whose applications include fermented vegetables such as pickles, kimchi<\/a>, sauerkraut, and fermented milks such as cheese and yogurt. Before we begin, let’s define what fermentation is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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