Effect of anti-mold organic compounds on shelf-life extension and quality of yeast-fermented bread

This study investigated the effects of citric acid, fumaric acid (FA), lactic acid, malic acid, and sodium acetate (SA) on the physicochemical properties, mold-free shelf life, and sensory quality of yeast-fermented bread. Incorporation of organic acids lowered dough pH and reduced specific volume in a concentration-dependent manner, whereas SA slightly increased dough pH and maintained loaf volume, reflecting its buffering effect. FA at 0.17–0.33% resulted in reduced hardness compared with the control, primarily due to acid-induced gluten weakening. FA exhibited the strongest anti-mold activity at concentrations as low as 0.17%, suggesting the potential for clean-label applications using FA-containing agricultural sources. Excessive FA could cause sourness and reduced loaf expansion; thus, the synergistic effect of 0.17% FA and 0.20% SA was evaluated, extending mold-free shelf life by 10 days while maintaining volume, moisture, and hardness comparable to the control. To assess the commercial viability, the preliminary preference screening was conducted with 20 trained assessors, which may have limited the ability to detect differences in preference due to the relatively small sample size. Nevertheless, no significant differences in taste or overall preference were observed between the control and breads formulated with 0.17% FA and 0.20% SA, suggesting potential consumer acceptance.