Characterization of leuconostoc strains isolated from fresh anchovy (Engraulis anchoita)

Abstract

The biomass value of anchovy (Engraulis anchoita), the most abundant fish species in the Southwest Atlantic Ocean, is considered to be around 4,300,000 tons, with a maximum sustainable yield of 1,140,000 tons (Cabrer et al., 2002), being at present under exploited at 27,800 tons/year (SAGPyA, 2008). Recently, as part of the FAO's project Towards a Sustainable Aquaculture: Selected Issues and Guidelines, which addresses the use of wild fish to feed cultured fish and its implications to food security and poverty alleviation, a study on the use of small pelagic fish for new product development has been carried out (Madureira et al., 2007). Although this resource is shared by Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina in the so called lanchoita Bonaerensez stock, anchovy is processed for human consumption only in Argentina, where a diversified production (whole frozen, salt-cured, marinated and tinned anchovy fillets) targets mainly the external market. E. anchoita is described as a species with high-lipid content which undergoes significant variations according to the time of the year (Yeannes and Casales, 1995). Due to lipid oxidation, anchovy is highly perishable; however high-polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3) content (Massa et al., 2007) makes ancho- vy a healthy raw material; its dietary intake is in fact inversely associated with cardiovascular diseases in population studies (Cicero et al., 2009).