Development and Application of Starter Cultures, 2nd Edition

This second edition of the Special Issue builds on the first, highlighting the evolving role of starter cultures in modern food fermentation, where they are increasingly understood not merely as technological tools but as complex biological systems that shape safety, process robustness, sensory quality, and microbial biodiversity. As the demand grows to reconcile standardization with the preservation of autochthonous characteristics, this collection highlights a shift toward a more ecological integrated view. The contributions emphasize complementary strategies for starter culture development: the selection of well-defined species and strains to ensure reproducibility and safety, and the design or stabilization of complex, biodiversity-rich autochthonous consortia to maintain product typicity and territorial identity. In this context, fermentation is framed as a dynamic ecosystem in which microbial interactions, substrate composition, and environmental conditions collectively determine outcomes. This Reprint gathers current research and reviews addressing starter culture design, optimization, and application across diverse fermented foods, with particular attention to strain-level diversity, microbial interactions, and process scalability. It also highlights emerging approaches aimed at harnessing microbial biodiversity as a functional resource, supporting the transition from empirical fermentation practices toward more predictive microbiome management. The collected works contribute to advancing solutions that balance technological performance, safety, and biodiversity preservation across production systems.