Double use of concentrated sweet whey for growth and spray drying of probiotics: Towards maximal viability in pilot scale spray dryer
Résumé
Spray-drying is expected to be a cost-efficient way to produce probiotic powders. Indeed, a novel
simplified process was recently reported, using concentrated sweet whey (30 wt %) as a sole medium for
both growth and spray drying of probiotics. The feasibility of scaling up this process was validated in the
present work with a semi industrial pilot scale spray dryer. A multi-stage mild-conditions drying process,
coupling spray-drying with belt drying and fluid-bed drying, was also applied in this work, in which the
final probiotic survival was improved to approximately 100% (>109 CFU g 1). The change of probiotic
viability in the powders was monitored during a 6-month storage, which indicated that storage temperature
and moisture content of powders play crucial roles in the stability of probiotic powders.
Moreover, spray-drying afforded a strain-dependent enhancement of bacterial tolerance in simulated
intestinal fluid, in comparison with fresh cultures