Abstract
In the production of fermented meat products, microorganisms of various taxonomic groups play an extremely important role, namely in the formation of specific taste, aroma, colour, and consistency. Both fermentative and spontaneous microflora take part in the components' transformation of meat raw materials during the maturation of such products, and the course of this process depends on the metabolic activity of the strains. In accordance, this article's purpose is to select microbiota compositions (lactic acid bacteria and coagulase-negative cocci) for the fermentation of meat raw materials. So, as a result of the research, 4 compositions were selected, two of which are lactic acid bacteria with micrococci (No. 2, 3) and two lactic acid bacteria with staphylococci (No. 1, 6). They were characterized by the high productivity of each of the components of the leavening composition, in particular, it was established that the number of MKB increased – by 4.3-6.5 times, and micrococci and staphylococci – by 7.7-28.6 times, respectively. For these compositions, mutual stimulation of the components was observed, contributing to the active microorganisms' development and their biochemical activity. Fermentation compositions No. 1, 6, 4, and 6 had the highest nitrite-reducing activity, and a high level of proteolysis characterized compositions No. 1, 2, 3, and 4. According to the results of determining the antagonistic activity against opportunistic and pathogenic microorganisms, it was established that the investigated compositions exhibit antagonistic activity against both gram-negative and gram-positive microorganisms.