Isolation, Characterization of Lactic Acid Bacteria from Local Cheese And Determination Of The Acidifying Activities Of The Isolates

Locally produced Cheese “Wara”Produced from fresh cow milk were collected from Emure-Ile in Owo, Ondo State and Subjected to microbiological analysis to determine acidifying bacteria present in it. Three genera were isolated: Lactococcus spp, Lactobacillus spp and Enterococcus spp, Lactococcus spp had the highest frequency of occurrence (50%, Lactobacillus spp (30%) while Enterococcus sp (20%). The pH of the Cheese after the fermentation processes is 4.2. The acidifying activities of the isolates were in the range of 9.008ml/ mot -34.23ml/ mol between 3rd – 24th hours of processing