Use of Lactobacillus for Lactic Acid Production from Agro-Industrial By-Products

Abstract

Agro-industrial by-products have not been efficiently valorized. Lactobacillus used to transform these by-products into interesting metabolites is a way to increase the adding-value of these residues and to contribute to the circular economy. These lactic acid bacteria (LAB) metabolize the available substrate produced by enzymes that are responsible for breaking complex carbohydrates into glucose and subsequently obtaining lactic acid through glycolysis in a homofermentative process. By-products used like substrates to produce lactic acid must be rich in carbohydrates e.g. whey, cassava peel, pineapple peel, and molasses, among others. In addition, from lactic acid obtained, it is possible to develop functional foods such as easily-assimilated beverages and to be antagonists to pathogenic microorganisms such as E. coli, improve the quality of final products and extract compounds of interest like pigments.