Identification of carotenoids produced from cheese whey by Blakeslea trispora in submerged fermentation.

The identification of carotenoids in B. trispora during pigment production from deproteinized hydrolyzed whey supplemented with plant oils was studied. The carotenoid content in Blakeslea trispora were beta-carotene, gamma-carotene, and lycopene. The composition of carotenoids depends of the amount of oils added to the cheese whey. At the maximum concentration of carotenoids, the proportions of beta-carotene, gamma-carotene, and lycopene (as percent of total carotenoids) was 60.1%, 32.5%, and 7.4%, respectively.