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Characterization of Yeast, Lactic Acid Bacteria, and Acetic Acid Bacteria Populations in Cacao Bean Fermentation 1 Department of Food Science and Biotechnology - Faculty of Agricultural Technology - Brawijaya University Abstract Cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) is a key agricultural commodity in Indonesia, ranking 8th globally in cocoa production in 2024. The Forastero variety, primarily produced for its pest resistance, is notably cultivated in Malang, East Java. However, improper fermentation practices by many Indonesian farmers negatively affect the aroma and taste of cacao beans. Pod storage, a post-harvest process, has been suggested to improve cacao bean quality, yet research on the microbial count-particularly yeast, lactic acid bacteria, and acetic acid bacteria-specific to Forastero cacao in Ringin Kembar Village, Sumbermanjing Wetan, Malang Regency, remains limited. These microbes are crucial in influencing the physicochemical properties of fermented cacao, especially when pod storage is applied. The study involved storing cacao pods for 0 and 7 days, followed by a 6-day fermentation. Each treatment used 100 kg of pods, yielding 10 kg of seeds, divided into two fermentation baskets for replication. Microbial counts and physicochemical properties, including fermentation temperature, pH, moisture content, and sugar content, were analyzed using a Randomized Complete Block Design with ANOVA and Tukey test at a 5% confidence level. Results showed that pod storage significantly decreased moisture content and reduced sugars while increasing fermentation temperature, pH, yeast count (9.26 log cfu/g), and acetic acid bacteria count (9.16 log cfu/g). Pod storage also resulted in 92% fermented beans, reduced moisture content to 4.32%, and reduced total reduced sugar content to 4.3% mg/g. Keywords: Cacao-Fermentation-Microorganism-Physicochemical-Pod Storage Topic: Food science and biotechnology |
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