Semidry and Dry Fermented Sausages 395crobial compounds and also provide sensorial,
technological, nutritional, and/or health
advantages. Recently, new starter cultures of
LAB and CNC bacteria with important func-
tionalities have been developed. The control
over proteolytic and lipolytic activities of
starter cultures ’ bacteria during meat fermen-
tation has led to improved aroma and fl avor
characteristics, as well as improved physio-
logical functions of the generated peptides.
Emphasizing bioactive metabolites ’ produc-
tion (vitamins, bioactive peptides, and
organic and fatty acids) in meat is a step
toward improving its health image and devel-
oping functional meat products (Arihara
2006 ). Since most fermented sausages are
usually not heated, they are adequate for the
carriage of probiotic strains, either selected
among naturally present bacteria or from
existing probiotic strains (De Vuyst and
Leroy 2008 ). In addition, functional starters
have also been used for technological advan-
tages, such as the acceleration of fermented
sausage processing by means of high tem-
peratures and enzyme addition (Fernandez
et al. 2000 ).
The consumer ’ s behavior toward typical
dry fermented sausages in a recent survey in
Italy indicated that these sausages are part of
consumption habits, reinforcing the impres-
sion that food consumption is neither an iso-
lated phenomenon nor exclusively focused
on food products per se, but is part of a wider
social context (Conter et al. 2008 ). Traditional
fermented sausages constitute a highly appre-
ciated specialty with gastronomic value and
are a rich source of bacterial biodiversity, the
deliberate use of which in industrial pro-
cesses could help to enhance the quality of
the fi nal product and offer health, marketing,
and technological advantages.References
Aguirrez á bal , M. , J. Mateo , M. Dom í nguez , and J.
Zumalac á rregui. 2000. The effect of paprika, garlic
and salt on rancidity in dry sausages. Meat Science
54 : 77 – 81.realizations, threats, and opportunities into
three consecutive and complementary periods
in which quality, food safety, and nutrition/
health were successively emphasized
(Vandendriessche 2008 ). The “ nutrition and
health ” period has only just started. Answers
to the meat industry ’ s questions as to how to
develop new healthier meat and meat prod-
ucts will undoubtedly come through func-
tional gene - and protein - expression studies
in the different meat ecosystems; hence
the implementation of “ omics ” technologies
within integrated programs of environmental
microbiology (Nelson et al. 2007 ). The
concept of health products includes what is
known as “ functional foods, ” defi ned as
foods that are used to prevent and treat certain
disorders in addition to their nutritional value
per se (Jim é nez – Colmenero et al. 2001 ).
Regrettably, meat has an unfortunate image
related to fat, saturated fatty acids, choles-
terol, salt, and nitrate/nitrite content; these
are associated with cardiovascular diseases,
some types of cancer, and obesity. However,
such a view disregards the fact that meat
plays a critical role in the maintenance of
human health as a source of proteins, vita-
mins, and minerals. Different strategies for
the development of healthier meat products
have been suggested. These include reduc-
tion of sodium, nitrites, fat, and cholesterol
content, as well as incorporation of func-
tional ingredients (Fern á ndez - Gin é s et al.
2005 ). On the other hand, the performance of
commercial starter cultures has been ques-
tioned, since their behavior is different when
applied to different types of fermented meat
products. It is crucial, therefore, to provide
traditional producers with the means to
produce safe and standardized products while
preserving their typical sensory quality. As a
response to these needs and to the demands
for health products, the use of a new genera-
tion of starter cultures has already been sug-
gested (Leroy and De Vuyst 2004 ). The
so - called “ functional starter cultures ” con-
tribute to food safety by producing antimi-