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发帖数: 94654 | 1 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/sausages-made-with-ba
Researchers say they have discovered way to ferment sausages that could turn
the fatty meat product into a health food similar to probiotic yogurts. The
secret ingredient? A type of bacteria found in baby faeces.
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Although this may sound like either the stupidest or the most disgusting
thing you’ve heard scientist get up to in recent years, the research -
published in the February issue of the journal Meat Science (yes, that’s
also a real thing) ? is actually a fascinating insight into the common
usages of bacteria in the food instury.
Bacterial fermentation is already a big part in making sausages and many
varieties (including favourites such as pepperoni and salami) owe their rich
and tangy flavour to bacteria, which even create lactic acids that stops
the development of germs in the meat.
However, while traditional manufacturing techniques mostly rely on the
bacteria that occur naturally in raw meat, researchers in Spain have been
experimenting with adding probiotic bacteria instead. The reason for the
sensationalist headlines? They've been collecting their samples from human
faeces.
Now, to go over the whys and wherefores of probiotic bacteria a little, the
term is one that's applied generally micro-organisms that are believed to
provide various health benefits. Ever since the invention of the microscope,
scientists have known that the human body is full of various bacteria - a
primitive form of life typically just a few micrometres in length.
However, in the beginning of the 20th century scentists began to suspect
that the bacteria that lives in the human gut (typically around 100 trillion
bacterial cells) might actually be helping us out, breaking down the
foodstuffs that our stomach acid can't handle and tackling the nastier germs
we might accidentally ingest.
'Gimme two pounds of that baby poop stuff, I've got a stomach ache like you
wouldn't believe.'
In recent decades this has led to many theories that adding probiotics to
food products will help with a number of ailments - anything from
gastrointestinal disorders such as constipation to allergic reactions.
Although the science surrounding this is still not entirely conclusive, this
doesn't stop researchers finding new ways to add the human-friendly
bacteria to our food.
With this particular batch of sasuges the probiotic bacteria used (
specifically Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium) was sourced from 43 stool
samples from healthy babies up to six months old.
This may sound like a bizarre step to take but it is in fact a standard (if
not common) method for isolating probiotics. For example, Lactobacillus
rhamnosus GG, a commercial strain found in a variety of yoghurts and ‘daily
dose’ drinks, was first isolated from human faeces in 1983.
And why faeces? Because, if you’re on the hunt for naturally-occurring
bacteria that have been busy helping the body, looking in the material that
has recently passed through the body of a healthy individual is a good place
to start.
Speaking to LiveScience about the research, co-author Anna Jofré, a food
microbiologist at Catalonia's Institute of Food and Agricultural Research's
(IRTA) food-safety program, added that “infant faeces are natural samples,
easy to obtain.”
After isolating the bacteria from their samples (this process involves
letting the bacteria develop in a petri dish ? it’s not simply plucked from
the faeces and dropped into the sausage), the researchers created six
batches of fuet - a Catalonian pork sausage that's similar to chorizo minus
the paprika.
Of the six strains of bacteria they used only one successfully took up home
in the fermenting sausages, with the strain growing to levels of “100
million cells per gram of sausage”, enough ? says Jofré ? to “produce
health-promoting effects to people”.
The sausages were all sampled by professional tasters who confirmed that the
flavour was indistinguishable from that of regular fuet - even though they
all contained less salt and less fat. You may not like the idea of sausages
made in this way, but bacteria found in faeces is probably already a part of
your diet - so don't complain when it makes your sausages healthier too. |
