Yeast - Food Spoilage

Food Spoilage

Yeasts are able to grow in foods with a low pH, (5.0 or lower) and in the presence of sugars, organic acids and other easily metabolized carbon sources. During their growth, yeasts metabolize some food components and produce metabolic end products. This causes the physical, chemical, and sensible properties of a food to change, and the food is spoiled. The growth of yeast within food products is often seen on their surface, as in cheeses or meats, or by the fermentation of sugars in beverages, such as juices, and semi-liquid products, such as syrups and jams. The yeast of the Zygosaccharomyces genus have had a long history as a spoilage yeast within the food industry. This is due mainly to the fact that these species can grow in the presence of high sucrose, ethanol, acetic acid, sorbic acid, benzoic acid, and sulphur dioxide concentrations, representing some of the commonly used food preservation methods. Methylene blue is used to test for the presence of live yeast cells.