Optimization of Xanthan Gum Fermentation Utilizing Food Waste

Xanthan Gum, a product used widely in the food industry, possesses high commercial value. The problem with Industrial Xanthan fermentation is its prohibitive cost of using pure sucrose as substrate. Food waste such as Carrot and Pumpkin peels contains glucose, sucrose, vitamins and minerals that are utilized by Xanthomonas campestris at a favourable pH. Effect of pH, whey and multivitamins have been studied on the yield. Xanthan was purified using chilled Isopropyl alcohol following a standard protocol. The yields of xanthan gum with Carrot, Pumpkin and MGYP at pH 6.0 were 40.88g/L, 31.4g/L and 14.06, respectively. Altering the pH in the experiment from 6.0 to 6.8 immensely influenced the biopolymer's yield. Supplementing media with whey and multivitamins rendered positive results. Tackling the problem of food waste in India is difficult and we have recycled food waste to make an economical medium for a high-value food additive i.e., Xanthan gum. Citation: Sakshi Shiram, Pranav Venugopal, Amogh Tungare, Neha Gondekar, Biswa Prasun Chatterji. "Optimization of Xanthan Gum Fermentation Utilizing Food Waste." Global Research and Development Journal For Engineering 6.5 (2021): 19 - 29.