An Investigation on Fermentative Changes During the Production of Food Bio-Colours through Solid State Fermentation of Soybean Meal by Monascus purpureus (MTCC 410) Mhalaskar S. R., Thorat S. S. Dept. of Food Science and Technology, Post Graduate Institute, Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth, Rahuri Tal.-Rahuri, Dist.-Ahmednagar, (M.S.), 413 722 Online published on 23 December, 2016. Abstract An attractive and stable colour is important in the marketability of foods and beverages. The utilization of soybean meal as a by-product from agricultural farm can be of immense importance to convert relatively high-energy by-products into more useful and highly nutritious end product by use of microorganisms. In this respect the present investigation was aimed to address the fermentative changes in soybean meal as a substrate during the production of food bio-colours through solid state fermentation by using Monascus purpureus (MTCC 410). The 9 days of SSF process was accompanied with the increase in the levels of protein, crude fat, crude fiber and ash content by values of 45.20% to 47.22%, 0.70% to 0.92%, 4.95% to 5.60% and 4.80% to 5.20% respectively while decrease in the levels of carbohydrate by values of 31.25% to 5.06%, with lowering pH from 6.5 to 5.0. Present findings concluded that soybean meal possesses good potentials for the bioconversion of the high energy organic materials into more useful and highly nutritious food bio-colours by Monascus purpureus (MTCC 410). Top Keywords Monascus, soybean meal, bio-colours, colorants, solid state fermentation. Top |