Molecular quantification of clostridia in silage

During silage fermentation butyric acid-producing clostridia can multiply as a result of incorrect fermentation. As contaminants, clostridia enter the barn environment with the silage and are transferred into the raw milk during milking. This subsequently leads to serious quality defects in dairy products, in particular to undesirable gas formation during hard cheese ripening. Monitoring of silage quality with regard to clostridial contamination is therefore of great importance in order to avoid the introduction of clostridia into cheese production. As part of the project, a molecular biological detection method for clostridia is to be developed for long-term use in the quality control of silage.