Non-dairy kefir beverages. Formulation, composition, and main features

Kefir is a symbiotic microbial blend of lactic acid bacteria, yeast, and acetic acid bacteria anchored to a polysaccharide matrix, endowing remarkable health benefits. The increase in the number of lactose intolerant, vegan and vegetarian consumers, led, in recent years, to develop fruit or vegetable-based healthy formulas. This review has been conceived to be a complete collection of different classes of non-dairy kefir products. Fruit or vegetable-based are used as substrates for milk or water kefir grains fermentation. The microbiological, chemical-physical, technological, and sensory aspects were discussed for each formulation. Moreover, when available, other potential health benefits were reported and discussed.