SIZE REDUCTION OF FREEZE DRIED BACTERIA CULTURE

Background / Requirement

Bacteria culture is used in the production of many types of food products, such as yoghurt and cheese. The desired bacteria is “grown” on appropriate media in a controlled environment and is later harvested and prepared in an appropriate protective medium. These protective medium (such as skim milk, honey, raffinose or glutamate) are used to suspend cells to be freeze dried to protect the bacteria/microorganisms against known freezing and drying injuries. Freeze drying is a convenient method for preservation and long-term storage of a wide variety of microorganisms. Freeze drying involves the removal of water from frozen cell suspension by sublimation under reduced pressure. In a production environment, the freeze dried bacteria culture result in “slabs” that look like styrofoam. These slabs vary in sizes and are stored in freezers until they are ready to be used. These slabs are size reduced to powder form allowing for use in various manufacturing processes (eg. cheese fermentation).