From microbiomes and food, to health
Résumé
Like other types of microbiomes, food microbiomes have benefited enormously in the last decade from global approaches to characterizing microbial communities. At the same time, the gut microbiota, its ramifications and its links to health have been clearly highlighted. At the crossroads of the food microbiota and the gut microbiota, fermented foods and their potential for health have been revisited. Derived from a traditional and ancestral heritage in different food cultures, they represent opportunities for the reasoned development of new types of foods. However, the scientific evidence for their health benefits needs to be rationalized. I will present what is known about food microbial communities and their function in fermented foods as well as recent scientific directions for investigation on their rationalized health effects.