Articles
Production of fig vinegar from the production waste of cotto di fichi of Apulian Ficus carica L. cultivars using yeasts and bacteria isolated from the epiphytic microbiota of the fruits as microbial starters
Article number
1464_24
Pages
181 – 190
Language
English
Abstract
An ancient story, that of vinegar, is at least as old as that of other foods and beverages born from a fermentation process, such as wine, bread, and beer.
Besides having a fundamental organoleptic role in some dressings and culinary preparations, vinegar is important for its preservative function to keep many foods over time.
It was also used as a remedy in some medical practices of the past.
This work proposes to develop a new food product from a waste product derived from the production process of “cotto di fichi”, a traditional product of southern Italy, as a virtuous example of productive development in the circular economy, valorising Apulian Ficus carica L. cultivars subject to genetic erosion.
The cooking phase of the figs, for the production of “cotto di fichi” produces a sugary water with peculiar organoleptic characteristics, derived from the raw material used, which is usually discarded.
In the proposed work, the “cooking waters” of two cultivars of Apulian figs, Ficus carica L. ‘Del Vescovo’ and ‘Reale Nero del Gargano’, were recovered.
At the same time, technological fermentation trials were conducted on an unknown yeast isolated from the microbiota of Ficus carica L. ‘Del Vescovo’ and on an unknown acetic bacterium, a catalase-positive diplo-bacillus, isolated from the microbiota of Prunus cerasus L. ‘Visciola’. The yeast was subsequently used as a starter for the alcoholic fermentation of the “cooking waters”. At the end, acetic fermentation was initiated using the acetic bacterium from the ‘Visciola’ as the starter.
The two products obtained were subjected to preliminary basic chemical analyses (pH, °Brix, and total acidity expressed in g L‑1 of acetic acid), evaluation of the aromatic VOC profile with GC-FID E-Nose, analysis of the metabolic component through 1.9 T nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and sensory evaluation through panel testing.
Besides having a fundamental organoleptic role in some dressings and culinary preparations, vinegar is important for its preservative function to keep many foods over time.
It was also used as a remedy in some medical practices of the past.
This work proposes to develop a new food product from a waste product derived from the production process of “cotto di fichi”, a traditional product of southern Italy, as a virtuous example of productive development in the circular economy, valorising Apulian Ficus carica L. cultivars subject to genetic erosion.
The cooking phase of the figs, for the production of “cotto di fichi” produces a sugary water with peculiar organoleptic characteristics, derived from the raw material used, which is usually discarded.
In the proposed work, the “cooking waters” of two cultivars of Apulian figs, Ficus carica L. ‘Del Vescovo’ and ‘Reale Nero del Gargano’, were recovered.
At the same time, technological fermentation trials were conducted on an unknown yeast isolated from the microbiota of Ficus carica L. ‘Del Vescovo’ and on an unknown acetic bacterium, a catalase-positive diplo-bacillus, isolated from the microbiota of Prunus cerasus L. ‘Visciola’. The yeast was subsequently used as a starter for the alcoholic fermentation of the “cooking waters”. At the end, acetic fermentation was initiated using the acetic bacterium from the ‘Visciola’ as the starter.
The two products obtained were subjected to preliminary basic chemical analyses (pH, °Brix, and total acidity expressed in g L‑1 of acetic acid), evaluation of the aromatic VOC profile with GC-FID E-Nose, analysis of the metabolic component through 1.9 T nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and sensory evaluation through panel testing.
Authors
F. Loperfido, A. Galeotti, V. Petrelli, S. Pupillo, A. Turco, G. Maggi, V. Gallo, P. Venerito
Keywords
figs, minor fruits, valorisation, biodiversity, vinegar, circular economy, food waste, innovativeness
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