Food Microbiology
Other
Foods 
Fermented Meat
Dry and semidry sausages are the largest category of fermented meat products. Many present day meat-fermenting processes originate in the Mediterranean region. Fermented sausages are chopped or ground meat products that are made acidic (drop in pH to 5.3 or less) by bacterial action and then dried. Dry sausages have a final moisture content of 25-45% while sausages classified as semi-dry have a final moisture content of 40-50%. Most processors have developed pure microbial starter cultures to control the fermentation and ensure consistent flavor, texture, and shelf life, as well as improving product safety. With a pure starter culture, the pH drops much more rapidly and the entire manufacturing process is accelerated, which leads to economic benefits for the processor. Most starter cultures are natural isolates of the desirable microorganisms normally found in sausage and a variety of species have been used as starter cultures in the fermentation of meat and poultry products.
Fermented Vegetables and Fruit
Many different microbes can be involved in the fermentation of vegetables and fruits. LAB and yeasts are preferred in the western hemisphere, while in the Orient uses a large number of molds. However, the fermentation of lactic acid is the predominate procedure for biopreservation of fruits and veggies. Because they contain fermentable carbohydrates and harbor many types of LAB, almost all veggies can be fermented naturally with no need for a starter culture. Although many different veggies are commercially fermented, only olives, sauerkraut and cucumber pickles are currently economically important.
Cucumber Pickles
If used, the starter culture for cucumber fermentation usually consists of a mixture from the natural microflora of cucumbers, including Lactobacillus mesenteroides, L. brevis, L. plantarum, Enterococcus faecalis, Pediococcus cerevisiae. The natural fermentation of cucumbers has been in practice for many years, but it lead to pickle spoilage resulting in economic loss and health risks. A controlled cucumber fermentation reduces economic loss and leads to a more uniform product over a shorter period of time. This method uses a chlorinated brine, acetic acid acidification, addition of sodium acetate, and inoculation with P. cerevisiae and L. plantarum, or L. plantarum only.
Pickled Olives
The microbes responsible for the fermentation of olives differ from other fermented vegetables, such as cucumbers, because the higher salt content of the brine inhibits the growth of salt-sensitive organisms and provides an advantage to osmotolerant organisms. LAB, in particular, Lactobacillus mesenteroides and Pediococcus cerevisiae, predominate during the intermediate stage of fermentation. Other lactobacilli become important in later stages, including Lactobacillus brevis and Lactobacillus plantarum.
Fermented Beverages
Kombucha Tea
Kombucha tea is a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast, and it is known around the world as both a health drink and a vinegar. According to traditional Chinese medicine, Kombucha balances the Middle Qi (Spleen and Stomach). Some believe that by aiding the stomach to better digest food and by assisting the spleen to deliver more nutrition, the body heals itself. Normally kombucha is brewed between 6-8 days when it arrives at a semi sweet sparkling apple cider taste. Aged kombucha (8-14 days or longer) produces a sharper vinegar taste. Vinegar (kombucha) is thought to help to break stagnation and reduces damp and phlegm. These and many other medical benefits have been attributed to kombucha tea; however clinical trials have not yet been performed to support these claims with experimental evidence.
More on kombucha tea and how
to make it: http://kombucha-tea.50megs.com/