Probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum SVP2 fermented bioactive EPS-rich milk whey functional beverage

Owing to global rise in the milk consumption and demand, generation of milk whey is high, which is being discarded at a substantial volume. This nutritious by-product could be converted into a valuable resource. This study involves synthesis of a functional beverage from milk whey by fermentation with a bioactive EPS producing Lactobacillus plantarum SVP2 strain. In-order to enhance EPS during fermentation, design of experiments approach was utilized. Sucrose and incubation time exhibited curvature among other variables (inoculum and temperature) via OVAT approach, and were consecutively optimized for enhanced EPS production by L. plantarum SVP2 by 2² central composite design method. At optimized conditions of 54.14 g/L sucrose and 52.97 h incubation time, maximum EPS of 98.15 ± 0.18 g/L was attained. Date syrup (15% v/v) sweetened fermented milk whey was stored upto 30 days, and its sensory and rheological properties were tested. It was noted that the cell count, pH and EPS reduced drastically after 15 days of storage. Sensory analysis revealed that the fermented functional drink exhibited yogurt like smell and taste, while from rheological behaviour, shear thinning characteristics were observed. Ingestion of this beverage results in several health benefits from the bioactive EPS produced by Lactobacillus plantarum SVP2.