Application of spray drying for preservation of lactic acid starter cultures: a review

The preservation of lactic acid cultures by spray drying has been widely studied as an alternate industrial process for the preservation of lactic acid starter cultures because of the high costs and energy consumption of freezing and freeze drying. This article reviews the concepts and findings of spray drying of lactic acid starter cultures, with specific reference to methods suitable for achieving high levels of cell viability. Spray drying features, advantages and disadvantages in the preservation of lactic acid cultures are discussed. Particular attention has been paid to the factors influencing cell viability including intrinsic tolerance of cultures, growth media and conditions, stress induction, cell harvesting conditions, protective agents, rehydration conditions, packaging and storage conditions.