The primary goal of iFUNFoods was to produce innovative foods using immobilized lactic acid bacteria cultures on natural prebiotic substrates (nuts, fruits, cereals, etc.). This three-year research project focused on isolating new microbial strains, scaling up technologies for the production of probiotic ingredients, assessing their efficacy using animal models, and confirming their beneficial effects through clinical studies. The integrated approach aimed to isolate “wild” strains of lactic acid bacteria from biological samples (e.g., traditionally fermented foods), evaluate and characterize them, then develop, evaluate, and produce symbiotic food ingredients that enhance viability and prolong probiotic lifespan, offering health benefits to consumers.

Key project objectives

• Isolate more than 50 new “wild” lactic acid bacteria strains from Greek traditional foods (dairy products, sausages, etc.) and evaluate their probiotic properties in vitro
• Develop safe, HACCP-compliant methodologies/technologies for large-scale industrial production of lactic cultures and their immobilization on prebiotic substrates, maintaining culture viability at or above 7 logcfu/g
• Characterize new strains that help stabilize the intestinal microbiome
• Confirm the positive effect of immobilization on cell viability during both storage and transit through the GI tract, yielding beneficial microbiome effects
• Develop a new, innovative probiotic ingredient (culture or immobilized culture) serving as a novel health component for the food industry
• Produce at least one innovative final product that is safe for consumption, containing lactic acid bacteria in sufficient amounts per IPA Europe guidelines
• Expand knowledge on the probiotic food market and related competition
• Enrich scientific, business, and general public knowledge on how immobilization protects cells during digestion, as well as its role in stabilizing the microbiome