Table olive fermentation with multifunctional Lactobacillus pentosus strains

•In this work, four L. pentosus strains were assayed as starter cultures in olive fermentations.•Microbial changes were properly modelled for both growth and death phases.•Starters led to high LAB and low Enterobacteriaceae levels and fast acidification.•Inoculation did not assure per se the imposition of the particular strain in the brines.•However, distinctive characteristic processes were obtained by the use of starters.

This study assesses the technological characteristics and the dominance in brines of four selected potential probiotic Lactobacillus pentosus strains during green table olive Spanish-style fermentations. When compared with the spontaneous process, the use of these microorganisms as starter led to higher lactic acid bacteria than yeast populations, a decrease in Enterobacteriaceae levels and a faster acidification of the brines. Microbial changes were properly modelled with equations including both growth and death phases. Diverse genetic profiles among the lactic acid bacteria populations were found at the end of fermentation. Hence, inoculation using the current green olive processing technology guaranteed the development of the typical Spanish-style with, as shown by discriminant function analysis, some distinctive characteristic processes, according to strains, but did not assure per se the imposition of the selected strain in the cover brines.