The Department of Food Microbiology began at the very inception of CFTRI in 1950, and has stayed an essential wing of the institute ever since then.

· Micro-organisms and their metabolites for food, feed and fuel

· Value-addition and upgradation of agro-industrial commodities

· Appropriate rural technology

· Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages

· Industrial alcohol (Ethanol)

· Food spoilage and food poisoning micro-organisms

· Mycotoxins

· Biogas from food processing wastes and bio-methanation

· Bio-degradation of chemical pollutants

· Anaerobic Microbiology

· Taxonomy of micro-organisms

· Rapid method of screening cultures for metabolite production

· Cultivation of micro-organisms by solid-state and sub-merged
  methods

· Enzyme technology including downstream processing

· Scale-up trials on fermentation processes

· Toxicological studies related to fungi and bacteria

· Molecular biology and genetic engineering

· Microbial physiology and bio-chemistry

· Bio-degradation of pollutants

· Fermented foods and bio-energy

Major Technologies Developed/Transferred
(Examples of products and processes)

· Food enzymes: fungal amylases, alpha-amylase, pectinase,
  amyloglucosidase and catalase

· Fungal phytase

· Alcohol -using osmo-tolerant strains of Saccharomyces cerevisae

· Aflotoxin decontamination (by filtration method)

· Natural vinegar generation (including generator design) from jaggery

· Xanthan gum

· Ready-to-use Idli batter in retail packs

·· Biogas production from fruit and vegetable processing wastes

GRANT IN AID PROJECTS

· Bio-technological approaches for analysis and reduction of aflatoxin
  in food materials

· Microbial processing of honey for value-added health foods

· Introduction of high digestibility and high lysine characteristics into
  elite Indian cultivars of sorghum

· Development of gene probes through PCR techniques to detect
  food-borne pathogenic bacteria

· Application of protoplast bio-technology for enhancing flavour
  constituents

· Bio-remediation of soils contaminated with organochlorine pesticide
  residues: Field trials

MAJOR LABORATORY PROJECTS

· Microbial consortium for plastic degradation

· Microbial colour from Rhodotorula and Monascus

· Process scale-up for bio-preservation of vegetables (long-term
  strategic research)

· Improvements in microbial production of pullulan and gelling
  polysaccharides (long-term strategic research)

· Microbial starter cultures for traditional food fermentation and
  predictive microbiological approach to food safety

· Development of Aspergillus niger as a host in hyper-production of
  industrial enzymes by genetic engineering

Academic and Training Profile

The department conducts Short Term Training 

· Short-term training programmes in microbiology and genetic
  engineering for industrial, research and training organisations and
  individuals

Technical Services Offered

· Analysis of food and water samples for food-borne pathogenic and
  spoilage bacteria

· Supply of microbial cultures for research purposes and industrial use

· Consultancy/ad hoc technical assistance/sponsored work related to  food microbiology

The department has excellent facilities for basic and industry-oriented research for-

· Isolation of micro-organisms and their aerobic and anaerobic
  cultivation

· Estimation and identification of microbial metabolites such as
  enzymes, colours, polysaccharides and toxins

· Enumeration and identification of food-related pathogenic bacteria by both conventional and recent techniques

· Genetic engineering work related to the area of microbiology

Head                                                                                           Food Microbiology Department
Central Food Technological Research Institute,
Mysore - 570 013.
Ph: + 91 -  821 - 2517539
Fax: + 91 - 821 - 2517233

E-mail: foodmicro @ cftri . res . in                                                 Top