FERMENTED BEVERAGES WITH OAT EXTRACTS AND STINGLESS BEE HONEY

Faced with new consumer demands, fermented vegetable drinks have gained space as probiotic alternatives. Oats (Avena sativa L.), with health benefits and prebiotic properties, are consolidated as a promising raw material for these products. This study developed and characterized vegetable drinks based on oat extract enriched with honey from stingless bees. Six formulations were prepared with 10% and 20% (w/v) of oat extract, submitted to pasteurization (63°C/30min) or gelatinization (90°C), followed by enzymatic hydrolysis with LpHera and Saczyme GOx (65°C). The samples were fermented for 18 hours at 37°C with the strains Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lacticaseibacillus casei and Lactococcus lactis. Centesimal, physicochemical analyses (pH, titratable acidity, soluble solids, reducing sugars), phenolic compounds, antioxidant activity (ABTS), bacterial count (pour plate and CFU), color (HunterLab), viscosity (Brookfield) and sensory evaluation (hedonic scale and CATA) were performed. The L. acidophilus strain showed better performance, with lactic acid production between 0.10–0.35%, final pH of 4.27–6.03 and viability higher than 10⁶ CFU/mL, being used in the final formulations. During the 21 days of storage, the physicochemical parameters remained stable, with pH between 4.38–4.62 and acidity of 0.16–0.37%. Soluble solids increased significantly in the hydrolyzed formulations (9.55–10.2%), evidencing the efficacy of hydrolysis. Bacterial viability decreased, but remained above 10⁶ CFU/mL until the 18th day of storage.