Isolation, identification and determination of some technological properties of lactic acid bacteria from raw goat milk

It is extremely important to produce autochthonous starter cultures that play a major role in the microbial safety, product stability, product-specific aroma and taste of products in the dairy industry. These cultures also help to protect microbial diversity and biological heritage and increase the quality of the local product while combining traditional production with modern technology. The aim of this research was to isolate lactic acid bacteria naturally found in raw goat milk and to determine some technological properties of selected isolates among the identified isolates. For this purpose, microbiological analyses of raw goat milk samples taken from different farms were carried out and technological properties were tested. A total of 87 isolates, obtained from the samples and presumed to be potential lactic acid bacteria based on preliminary tests, were identified using the MALDI-TOF MS technique. According to this result, the dominant microflora in goat milk was found to be Enterococcus spp. with 26.4%, Lactococcus spp. with 21.8% and Lactobacillus spp. with 12.6%. At the species level, the most dominant strains were E. faecium with 16.1%, Lc. lactis with 11.5% and L. reuteri with 5.7%, Lp. plantarum with 4.7%. The 19 LAB isolates were selected as Lc. lactis, L. reuteri and Lp. plantarum genera according to their potential to form starter cultures by considering their ability to produce flavour compounds, bacteriocins and acids, their ability to produce proteolytic and antimicrobial activity and their ability to ferment milk. As a result, it was observed that some of the lactic acid bacteria isolates obtained have the potential to function as starter cultures in the food industry. It was concluded that the effect and performance of these isolates in the production of dairy products should be tested and evaluated additionally.