Tracking of pathogenic and beneficial microflora from fermented wild boar meat sausages produced by traditional procedures in Croatia

The production of food with the assemblage “traditional” or “authentically” is gaining importance all over the world, both in terms of preservation of inheritance and as a key issue for the high-quality human nutrition. Overall, the interest of consumers on boar meat and boar meat products is increasing because of their specific, strong taste, low fat content and good balance between unsaturated and saturated fatty acids. Although the industrial development requires the use of starter cultures and control of the manufacturing process, the sausages from boar animals produced by traditional procedures by small scale producers (at least in Croatia) do not include the application of starter cultures. Such artisan products are increasingly appreciated because of their sensory properties and authenticity although of great consideration due to their microbiological safety. The project aims to determine the microbiological safety of wild boar meat and wild boar meat sausages originating from small scale producers in Croatia and to identify and characterize the indigenous lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated during sausage fermentation. The technological properties of dominant LAB relevant to sausage manufacture, namely proteolysis, lipolysis, antimicrobial compounds as well as antibiotic resistance patterns will be also investigated. Applications of indigenous starter cultures will be also interesting for them leading to more diverse and authentically products showing the typical local properties and quality with designated geographical origin that could be placed on the international market.