Chapter 25 - Probiotics from the Olive Microbiota

Abstract

Table olives are considered the most economically important fermented vegetable in the western world, with an increasing rate of production and consumption in recent years. In the last decade, a considerable research effort has been undertaken to transform table olives, a traditional fermented food, into a promising functional food that apart from its already increased nutritional value, serves as a vehicle for probiotic bacteria. Series of experiments have been performed to evaluate the imposition and survival of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) (of human, dairy, or olive origin) applied as adjunct, starter, or fortification cultures in table olives. The evaluation of the probiotic potential of microorganisms (LAB or yeasts) isolated from olives has received remarkable interest recently, because these isolates may be used as starter or adjunct cultures in table olive fermentations. Wild-type strains, isolated from the olive environment, are more likely to survive through the fermentation process, because natural selection has endowed them with ecological advantages. The imposition and survival of the probiotic strains to the final product is of great importance, in order to deliver and exert the beneficial effects in the human intestine.