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Fermentation Atlas

Fermented milk from Worldwide

Probiotic and therapeutic fermented milks (family)ацидофилин

This family covers milks soured by one chosen strain or a small blend, such as Lactobacillus acidophilus, bifidobacteria or the Shirota strain, rather than by yoghurt or kefir cultures alone. The milk is heated hard so that the chosen strain has no competition, then fermented and often sweetened and diluted into a drink. Codex and national rules set minimum counts of live bacteria. Made in 5 steps over 24 h. The longest step, ferment, takes 24 h (FAO 1990). Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step24 hReported[fao-tmp]Ferment
Temperature85 °CReported[fao-tmp][yakult-au]Heat the milk hard
Fully documentedFermented milk24 hMore fermented milkMore from EuropeMore from Japan

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceNo single recipe; amounts here are from the FAO description of an Ecuadorian acidophilus- bifidus milk and from Yakult's published process.
Milk or skim-milk powder in water[fao-tmp][yakult-au]
2 % of the milk (FAO example)Pure culture of the chosen strain(s) · L. acidophilus with Bifidobacterium longum in the FAO example; L. paracasei Shirota for Yakult[fao-tmp][yakult-au]
OptionalSugar syrup, flavouring and sterile water · For drinks such as Yakult[yakult-au]
Starterdefined culture

Total time across the recorded steps: 24 h

Start
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85 °C

What changes: The milk is heated hard so the chosen strain will have no competition

Step 1 of 5
Heat the milk hard
Time
10 min
Reported
Temperature
85 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
L. acidophilus
L. paracasei

Output: heat-treated milk with almost no competing bacteria.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Yakult's high heat browns the milk slightly (Maillard reaction)

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

What makes this one different

These milks are defined by one chosen strain and a minimum count of it, not by a traditional mixed culture. Kefir and koumiss rely on whole communities of bacteria and yeasts, and yoghurt on two thermophilic species.

Related ferments

Variants

  • Acidophilin (USSR)L. acidophilus, lactococci and a kefir-grain starter in equal parts (GOST 31668-2012).
  • Acidophilus milkMilk soured by L. acidophilus alone (Codex).
  • Acidophilus-bifidus milksL. acidophilus with bifidobacteria; in Denmark labelled acidophilus-bifido.
  • Yakult (Japan)Sweet, diluted drink made with L. paracasei Shirota.
  • Calpis (Japan)Fermented skim milk made into a syrup and diluted (Wikipedia list).

Safety

The milk is heat-treated hard before the culture goes in, and the products are sour and kept chilled, so they are low-risk foods. Codex requires at least 10^7 cfu/g of the starter bacteria up to the date of minimum durability; products heat-treated after fermentation lose that claim.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Yakult's strain is named after the company's founder, Dr Minoru Shirota, who discovered it (Yakult Australia). Acidophilin was first made in the Armenian SSR in the 1930s (ru.wikipedia). Calpis and Yakult made Japan an early home of sweetened probiotic drinks.

  1. [codex-243] Codex Alimentarius, Standard for Fermented Milks, CXS 243-2003spec
  2. [dk-bek195] Bekendtgørelse om mælkeprodukter m.v., BEK nr. 195 af 27. februar 2023 (Danish order on milk products), § 25 stk. 3 and Bilag 3spec
  3. [fao-tmp] FAO 1990, The technology of traditional milk products in developing countries, II. Acidified milks, 3.3 Kefir (Ecuador, L. acidophilus and B. longum)gov
  4. [yakult-au] Yakult Australia, Made fresh for you (factory process brochure, 2024)web
  5. [tetrapak] Tetra Pak, Dairy Processing Handbook, chapter Fermented milk products (probiotic adjuncts)book
  6. [wp-list] Wikipedia, List of fermented milk products (Japan, Russia; outline only)wiki