Production of kombucha-like beverage and bacterial cellulose by acerola byproduct as raw material

In this study, acerola byproduct was used as a new raw material for the production of kombucha-like beverage and bacterial cellulose. The amount of acerola byproduct (1, 3 and 5% w/v) in the preparation of the beverage affected the product formation. The final concentration of ethanol was similar in all samples, approximately 9.5 g/L, but it was achieved at 12, 9 and 6 days, respectively, suggesting that yeast metabolism was accelerated in the presence of higher amounts of acerola byproduct. In addition, the highest productions of acetic acid (16.3 g/L) and bacterial cellulose (4.0 g/L) were achieved with 5% byproduct. Less porous and denser membranes were obtained with a highly crystalline structure (96.4%), also in higher amounts of acerola byproduct. These results suggest that the increase in the content of polyphenols and vitamin C, naturally present in the acerola byproducts, increased the concentration of acetic acid, and improved the environment for bacterial cellulose production. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd