Progressive concept of postbiotic metabolites, new horizons of applied microbiology in functional foods and nutraceuticals

Applied microbiology and food safety research co-target new and innovative technologies to access the microbiological safety and stability of food products. By far, the biological hazards – primarily bacteria and viruses – pose the greatest risk in food microbiology. Therefore, there is always a need to go over basic concepts to better overcome food safety hazards. Beneficial microorganisms and their functional metabolites are increasingly being considered as bioprotective agents while among different natural antimicrobials, a considerable interest has been focused on those of microbial origins due to their more renewability, lower production costs, and natural origin. Considering the safety limitations of chemical preservatives, these microbial components known as postbiotics are recently considered as a progressive approach for extending food shelf-life, developing functional foods/ nutraceuticals, and boosting human health. Hence, it seems precious to evaluate the effectiveness of different probiotic-derived ingredients and their substantial potential to be incorporated in food systems as a promotion acting mechanism in retarding the growth of food spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms. The primary purpose of this presentation is to present the recent findings and our research outcomes based on several studies during the recent years, carried out on extraction of postbiotics components from traditional and/or commercial probiotics including organic acids, exopolysaccharides, bacteriocins, etc., plus their direct or indirect usage in food systems. Moreover, the effectiveness and functional impact of postbiotic application in food safety in retarding the growth of food spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms is overviewed.