The Vrije Universiteit Brussel research group Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology (IMDO) is participating in a European research project on food fermentation and is looking for sourdough starters from artisans and home bakers.
Fermented foods are common in our daily diets: in bread, beer, wine, pickles, sauerkraut, miso, kombucha and more. The process is increasingly popular, with many people making their own fermented foods at home, and fermentation technology could help us transition to a more plant-based diet. The European research project HealthFerm aims to understand the relationships between the microorganisms involved in food fermentation, the food products resulting from these processes and their effects on human health.
The IMDO research group has years of experience in research on sourdough and other fermented foods, and is one of the partners in this large-scale community science project. The VUB team wants to analyse the diversity of sourdough in the growing community of sourdough bakers and is appealing to citizens for their input. Home bakers who use a sourdough starter and maintain it regularly can participate in the study by registering on HealthFerm’s Citizen Science website.
The resulting microorganisms will be used to further investigate innovative fermentations, along with the health effects and consumer perceptions of new fermented foods. The results will be made available through an online, freely accessible food microbiome atlas, where participants can assess and compare the microorganisms of their foods.
More information: sourdoughs@vub.be
Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology
The Industrial Microbiology and Food Biotechnology research group at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel carries out research on spontaneous fermentation processes for the production of fermented foods and beverages. This leads to innovative insights to control these fermentation processes. It isn’t only beer and bread: the taste of chocolate also starts with the fermentation of cocoa beans.