WATER KEFIR, A FERMENTED BEVERAGE CONTAINING PROBIOTIC MICROORGANISMS: FROM ANCIENT AND ARTISANAL MANUFACTURE TO INDUSTRIALIZED AND REGULATED COMMERCIALIZATION

MORETTI, ANA FLORENCIA; MOURE, MARÍA CANDELA; FLORENCIA, QUIÑOY; FIORELLA, ESPOSITO; SIMONELLI, NICOLÁS; MEDRANO, MICAELA; LEÓN-PELÁEZ, ÁNGELA

Future Foods

Elsevier

Lugar: Ámsterdam; Año: 2022

2666-8335

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a demand for natural products able toenhance consumers health. Many people discovered the benefits of fermentedproducts such as milk and water kefir and kombucha. Specifically, water kefir hasaroused great interest from people interested in consuming foods that do not comefrom animals (plant-based and vegan diets) or people allergic to milk proteins orlactose intolerant, while increasing the scientific evidence of water kefir healthenhancement. This review deals with the needing for the establishment of qualityparameters found in traditional and flavoured water kefir drink, for their implementationin the industrially produced beverage. Such industrialization must seek the sustainabledevelopment of this economic activity for the implementation of circular economyguidelines. The benefits and safety of this non-dairy fermented drink have beendemonstrated since its ancestral consumption and have been documented by manyscientific works around the world. The scientific community must accompany this rapidadvance of fermented foods containing probiotic microorganisms, given the changingpriorities within the food industry. In addition, the quality parameters for the inclusion ofthis product in the Codex Alimentarius of many countries must be established, in orderto regulate its production on an industrial scale and marketing