Non-Conventional Yeasts as Alternatives in Modern Baking for Improved Performance and Aroma Enhancement

Abstract

Saccharomyces cerevisiae remains the baker’s yeast of choice in the baking industry. However, its ability to ferment cereal flour sugars and accumulate CO2 as a principal role of yeast in baking is not as unique as previously thought decades ago. The widely conserved fermentative lifestyle among the Saccharomycotina has increased our interest in the search for non-conventional yeast strains to either augment conventional baker’s yeast or develop robust strains to cater for the now diverse consumer-driven markets. A decade of research on alternative baker’s yeasts has shown that non-conventional yeasts are increasingly becoming important due to their wide carbon fermentation ranges, their novel aromatic flavour generation, and their robust stress tolerance. This review presents the credentials of non-conventional yeasts as attractive yeasts for modern baking. The evolution of the fermentative trait and tolerance to baking-associated stresses as two important attributes of baker’s yeast are discussed besides their contribution to aroma enhancement. The review further discusses the approaches to obtain new strains suitable for baking applications.

Sugar‐seeking insects as a source of diverse bread‐making yeasts with enhanced attributes

“…Our research shows that hymenopteraassociated yeasts, particularly the non-Saccharomyces yeasts from the genus Lachancea, but also some lesser-studied species, provide an opportunity to identify strains with the ability to tolerate the osmotic stress of manufacturing and sweet dough production, while also leavening bread competitively with a commercial baking strains. Our work adds to the growing interest in, and call for, the use of nonconventional yeasts in the food and fermentation-relevant industries (Canonico et al, 2019;Capece et al, 2018;Hutzler et al, 2021;Nikulin et al, 2020;Zhou et al, 2021) and highlights how using an eco-evo approach to bioprospecting may meet the needs of bakery product consumers and manufacturers while simultaneously increasing our understanding of yeast ecology and evolution.…”

“…This is the case despite the desire of bakers for novel baking features, some of which may be made possible by different yeast strains and species. It has been argued, that non‐ Saccharomyces yeasts might be unable to leaven breads at a competitive scale or rate, may be unsuitable for current manufacturing practices, unlikely to pass regulatory hurdles, or even unsafe (Aslankoohi et al, 2016; Donalies et al, 2008; Randez‐Gil et al, 2013; Steensels et al, 2014; Zhou et al, 2021). It seems probable that the more likely explanation, however, for the reliance on a single species of yeast relates to the promotion of that yeast species during the industrialization of bread production (Lahue et al, 2020).…”

“…Ideally, they need to provide these new features without increasing the number of listed ingredients or additives in foods and drinks (due to consumer preferences) (Expert Market Research, n.d.), or relying on genetically modified organisms (due to consumer hesitancy and uncertain regulatory landscapes) (Bawa & Anilakumar, 2013). Environmental Saccharomyces and non-Saccharomyces isolates have the potential to be a scalable source of new food and beverage features Zhou et al, 2021), while reducing the need for additional ingredients or GMO labeling.…”

“…Additionally, yeasts associated with insects, particularly those that have survived ingestion by insects, are particularly likely to be stress tolerant (having survived the high redox conditions of the insect gastrointestinal tract) (Dapporto et al, 2016). Such tolerance may translate to greater osmolarity tolerance, a trait of interest in yeast for sweet dough preparations (Hernandez-Lopez et al, 2003;Zhou et al, 2021). Perhaps most important to baking, yeasts associated with insects and the high-sugar environments they forage on often have diverse carbohydrate metabolisms.…”

Reduction of the Fusarium Mycotoxins: Deoxynivalenol, Nivalenol and Zearalenone by Selected Non-Conventional Yeast Strains in Wheat Grains and Bread

“…Piotrowska and Żakowska [ 41 ] showed that baker’s yeast and lactic acid bacteria mixed culture were found to be efficient in toxin degradation, which could be explained by the synergistic relationship between these microorganisms in the baker’s sourdough. However, recent research suggests that there are also many other yeasts with the same properties as S. cerevisiae that qualify them as alternative baker’s yeast [ 42 ].…”