Traditional fermented foods and beverages play a vital role in the diets of millions around the world, especially in developing countries. In Ethiopia, an extraordinary diversity of such products—ranging from staple foods like Injera to beverages such as Tella and Tej—offer not only cultural richness but also critical nutritional and health benefits. Understanding the microbial communities behind these traditional fermentations is key to unlocking their full potential in health, safety, and industrial applications. 

Problem 

While the nutritional and probiotic benefits of Ethiopian fermented products are widely acknowledged, scientific understanding of their microbial composition has been limited. Previous studies relied heavily on conventional culturing techniques, which are unable to capture the full extent of microbial diversity—particularly for fastidious or unculturable species. This gap in knowledge restricted efforts to scientifically validate their health benefits or to develop them into standardized, scalable biosolutions. 

Solution 

DARWIN Bioprospecting Excellence partnered with academic researchers to lead one of the most comprehensive microbial characterizations of a wide selection of Ethiopian fermented foods and beverages to date. Using a combination of culturomic and metataxonomic techniques, DARWIN’s scientific team analyzed nine distinct traditional products—ranging from foods (Kotcho, Injera) and condiments (Datta) to fermented beverages (Tej, Tella, Cheka, Kinito, Borde, Shamita). 

This dual approach enabled the identification of both dominant and previously undetected bacterial strains, including several lactic acid bacteria (LAB) with known probiotic potential based on previous studies. The study also provided insight into how fermentation conditions influence microbial composition and safety, highlighting the role of native microbiota in enhancing shelf life, nutritional value, food safety, and potential health benefits. 

The findings open up new avenues for developing next-generation probiotic strains and biosolutions derived from traditional fermentation systems—turning centuries-old practices into modern biotechnological innovations. 

Completion Year: 2025

Press

Paper: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1570914/full