Probiotics In Fresh Pasta Could Help Keep It Fresh Longer

Fresh pasta and dried pasta are two different entities altogether. While fresh pasta is made with raw ingredients and cooked with sauces immediately, dried pasta undergoes several processes and may contain preservatives to last longer in your pantry.

For dried pasta, the preservation method typically involves heat, similar to pasteurization. Most manufacturers also use the MAP technique—or modified atmosphere packaging—which removes oxygen and replaces it with other gases to ensure minimal bacteria growth. Because of these processes (and potentially preservatives), they can last up to two years. However, in some rare cases, bacteria can still thrive and may be harmful to consume.

On the other hand, fresh pasta is typically made and used immediately. Plus, it can only be stored for a short period of time in the refrigerator before it spoils completely. To change this, researchers at the Italian National Research Council and the University of Bari Aldo Moro developed a new preservation technique—now published in the Frontiers in Microbiology journal.  

The new preservation technique involved two changes—altering the MAP gas ratio to control bacterial growth and modifying the plastic films used in the packaging which ensures no foreign gases can enter. However, what completely changed the game was the probiotics incorporated into the fresh pasta. The researchers added a mixture of probiotic multi-strains and tested a few samples. After some time, it was found that the sample with the probiotics, paired with the modified packaging and MAP lasted the longest. This was confirmed using a gene-sequencing technology that identifies the microbial compositions, plus a mass spectrometry to profile volatile organic compounds in the pasta.

In Italy, pasta is taken very seriously since it is a huge part of Italian culinary traditions. Hence, this exploration was fully compliant with the 55-year-old ‘pasta law’ that governs its standards and production methods. That being said, fresh pasta with probiotics can potentially replace dried pasta on your local grocer’s shelves—without compromising its taste and quality.