Abstract

Fermented food and beverage products are made globally by using different practices, fresh materials and microbes. Fermented foods have ample sources of essential vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and antioxidants that are all enhanced through the process of fermentation. The advantageous effects related with fermented products have a special prominence during the production of these products in unindustrialized countries like Ethiopia. Therefore, coming to Ethiopia, fermented food and beverage products have practiced in a long history. During the production of traditional fermented food and beverage products, controlled natural fermentation process with the absence of starter cultures are used to initiate it. In Ethiopia, the local fermented food and beverage products are acid-alcohol type of fermentation. Moreover, the preparation of many traditionally fermented food and beverage products is still practiced in a household art thereby a wide variety of fermented foods and beverages are consumed in Ethiopia. Thus, this paper presents on the technology and microbiology of local fermented food and beverage products of Ethiopia.

Key words: Fermented food, kocho, keribo.