Probiotic yogurt and cheese from ultrafiltered milk: Sensory quality and viability of free-living and spray dried Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 564 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v

Abstract

The effect of free-living and spray-dried probiotic bacteria, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 564 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v, on sensory characteristics of yogurt and cheese made from ultrafiltered (UF) milk, as well as their viability during storage, was investigated. Bacterial counts of free-living and spray-dried probiotic cells in yogurt remained above 7.43 log cfu/ml after 21 days, whereas in UF cheese, cell count was 8.84 log cfu/g after 56 days of storage. Starter bacteria count maintained above 7.6 log cfu/ml for yogurt and 8.5 log cfu/g for UF cheese during storage, while pH values did not significantly differ from control (without probiotic) and probiotic variants. Sensory evaluation showed that probiotic yogurt and UF cheese were evaluated with very high marks. The long-term viability of spray-dried probiotic L. plantarum 564 and L. plantarum 299v in UF cheeses indicates that these products could be successfully used as probiotic carriers. Novelty impact statement: Spray drying probiotic cells showed significantly higher viability compare to free-living cells in yogurt. Potential probiotic bacteria Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 564 maintained at high level in ultrafiltered (UF) cheese. Probiotic yogurts and UF cheeses were evaluated with excellent sensory quality.