The process of solid‐state fermentation of soybean meal: antimicrobial activity, fermentation heat generation and nitrogen solubility index

Abstract BACKGROUND Bacillus amyloliquefaciens has excellent protease production ability and holds great prospects for application in the solid‐state fermentation of soybean meal (SBM). RESULTS Among eight strains of bacteria, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens subsp. plantarum CICC 10265, which exhibited higher protease production, was selected as the fermentation strain. The protease activity secreted by this strain reached 106.41 U mL −1 . The microbial community structure differed significantly between natural fermentation and inoculation‐enhanced fermented soybean meal (FSBM), with the latter showing greater stability and inhibition of miscellaneous bacterial growth. During fermentation, the temperature inside the soybean meal increased, and the optimal environmental temperature for FSBM was found to be between 35 and 40 °C. Sodium dodecyl sulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis and nitrogen solubility index (NSI) results demonstrated that solid‐state fermentation had a degrading effect on highly denatured proteins in SBM, resulting in an NSI of 67.1%. CONCLUSION Bacillus amyloliquefaciens subsp. plantarum CICC 10265 can enhance the NSI of SBM in solid‐state fermentation and inhibit the growth of miscellaneous bacteria. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.