CHANGES IN THE COMPOSITION AND QUALITY OF HERBACEOUS PLANTS UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF A CONSORTIUM OF LACTIC ACID BACTERIA AND AN ENZYME PREPARATION
Rubrics: 2. CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY
Authors:
1.
OOO «Ferment»
2.
Belarusian State Technological University
Type:
Article
Pages:
from 121
to 127
Status:
Published
Received:
30.01.2026
Accepted:
10.02.2026
Published:
26.02.2026
Language:
Russian
Keywords:
HERBACEOUS PLANTS, ALFALFA, CEREAL CROPS, LACTIC ACID BACTERIA, ENZYME PREPARATIONS, FERMENTATION, CELLULOSE, HEMICELLULOSES, LIGNIN, POLYSACCHARIDES, MONOSACCHARIDES, CRUDE PROTEIN
Abstract:
Herbaceous plant materials are a valuable renewable resource and a source of natural biopolymers (cellulose, hemicelluloses, pectin) and are widely used to produce plant-based carbohydrate-protein feeds and supplements. A pressing challenge is to produce a high-quality herbaceous product, ensuring a balanced nutritional profile, preserving, and increasing the digestibility of dry matter from herbaceous plants, which is achieved through fermentation. In this study, alfalfa, a common legume with a high crude protein content, was used in a mixture with carbohydrate-rich cereals. However, under natural drying conditions, alfalfa protein is quickly degraded by proteolytic enzymes. Fermentation of legumes is difficult due to the low content of monosaccharides and lactic acid bacteria in the epiphytic microbiota. In the study, the carbohydrate deficiency was compensated for using a mixture of alfalfa and high-carbohydrate cereal grasses (ryegrass, orchard grass, timothy grass) in a 1:1 ratio. To ensure the dominance of lactic acid bacteria during fermentation (without preliminary drying), a consortium of Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus buhneri, Lactobacillus diolivorans in an amount of 1·1011 CFU/g and an enzyme with a xylolytic activity of 20,000 units/g were added to the mixture. It was shown that after fermentation, the samples had an optimal pH value (4.1-4.4) and a ratio of lactic and acetic acids in the absence of butyric acid with an insignificant loss of dry matter. Compared to the original green mass of the legume-cereal mixture, the crude fiber content decreased by 2.4-7.9%, while the proportion of the water-soluble protein fraction increased. The results presented in this study can be recommended for use in the fermentation of other herbaceous plants.
Herbaceous plant materials are a valuable renewable resource and a source of natural biopolymers (cellulose, hemicelluloses, pectin) and are widely used to produce plant-based carbohydrate-protein feeds and supplements. A pressing challenge is to produce a high-quality herbaceous product, ensuring a balanced nutritional profile, preserving, and increasing the digestibility of dry matter from herbaceous plants, which is achieved through fermentation. In this study, alfalfa, a common legume with a high crude protein content, was used in a mixture with carbohydrate-rich cereals. However, under natural drying conditions, alfalfa protein is quickly degraded by proteolytic enzymes. Fermentation of legumes is difficult due to the low content of monosaccharides and lactic acid bacteria in the epiphytic microbiota. In the study, the carbohydrate deficiency was compensated for using a mixture of alfalfa and high-carbohydrate cereal grasses (ryegrass, orchard grass, timothy grass) in a 1:1 ratio. To ensure the dominance of lactic acid bacteria during fermentation (without preliminary drying), a consortium of Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus buhneri, Lactobacillus diolivorans in an amount of 1·1011 CFU/g and an enzyme with a xylolytic activity of 20,000 units/g were added to the mixture. It was shown that after fermentation, the samples had an optimal pH value (4.1-4.4) and a ratio of lactic and acetic acids in the absence of butyric acid with an insignificant loss of dry matter. Compared to the original green mass of the legume-cereal mixture, the crude fiber content decreased by 2.4-7.9%, while the proportion of the water-soluble protein fraction increased. The results presented in this study can be recommended for use in the fermentation of other herbaceous plants.
Keywords:
HERBACEOUS PLANTS, ALFALFA, CEREAL CROPS, LACTIC ACID BACTERIA, ENZYME PREPARATIONS, FERMENTATION, CELLULOSE, HEMICELLULOSES, LIGNIN, POLYSACCHARIDES, MONOSACCHARIDES, CRUDE PROTEIN
HERBACEOUS PLANTS, ALFALFA, CEREAL CROPS, LACTIC ACID BACTERIA, ENZYME PREPARATIONS, FERMENTATION, CELLULOSE, HEMICELLULOSES, LIGNIN, POLYSACCHARIDES, MONOSACCHARIDES, CRUDE PROTEIN
