Molasses
in Fermentation
Molasses
Molasses is used as a microbiological energy source in a wide range of fermentation processes.
It is used to grow yeasts, moulds and bacteria which transform sugars into alcohol, yeast, citric acid and the food additives monosodium glutamate and lysine.
Molasses is easy to incorporate into fermentation processes and represents a stable and predictable substrate to store and handle.
It is regularly the most cost-effective of the main energy sources available for these industries.
used in a wide range of fermentation processes
Cane molasses has significant biotin content which bakers’ and brewers’ yeasts need for growth; synthetic biotin must be added where beet molasses is used.
Large amounts of citric acid for use in soft drinks and pharmaceuticals are produced from moulds adapted to utilise cane and beet molasses as their energy source.
Cane Molasses contains B vitamins and biotin, which help the fermentation processes that produce ethanol for use in alcoholic drinks, cosmetics and solvents. Due to the buffering capacity of beet molasses, a greater quantity of sulphuric acid must be used to reduce pH to optimum fermentation levels than when cane molasses forms the energy stock. The popular alcoholic drink Rum is mainly produced from Sugar cane molasses which has yeast and water added to it to start the fermentation.
Molasses is an ideal energy source for the process involved in producing monosodium glutamate and lysine amino acids, which are used in both human and livestock food processing.
