Fermentation of Nocellara Etnea table olives by functional starter cultures at different low salt concentrations

Nocellara Etnea is one of the main Sicilian cultivars traditionally used to produce both olive oil and naturally fermented table olives. In the present study, the effect of different salt concentrations on physico-chemical, microbiological, sensorial, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) formation was evaluated in order to obtain functional Nocellara Etnea table olives. The experimental design consisted of 8 treatments as follow: fermentations at 4, 5, 6, and 8% of salt with (E1-E4 samples) and without (C1-C4 samples) the addition of starters. All the trials were carried out at room temperature (18 +/- 2 degrees C) and monitored for an overall period of 120 d. In addition, the persistence …