Monascus strain, Monascus anka 732Y3 (KCCM 10014) producing high amount of monascus pigments

DETAILED DESCRIPTION What is claimed is: 1.
A strain of Monascus anka KCCM 40014.




Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.
Field of the Invention The present invention relates to Monascus anka 732Y3 (KCCM 10014) induced from Monascus anka ATCC 16360 (=IFO 4478, KFCC 118 32) More particularly, the present invention is concerned with Monascus anka 732Y3 (KCCM 10014), which was induced from Monascus anka ATCC 16360 (=IFO 4478, KFCC 11832) by ultraviolet light irradiation and produces higher amounts of pigments than Monascus anka ATCC 16360.
2.
Description of the Related Art Increasing doubts about the health safety of many synthetic pigments to health has brought about a deep interest in of using natural colors in place of them.
In fact, along with the trend of avoiding the usage of artificial food additives in the food industry, every effort to get safe natural pigments to take the place of artificial dyestuffs has been made although the latter have been used title to relatively cheap prices.
Recently, a great portion of the synthetic pigments have not been allowed to be used in food processes in the developed countries like America and Japan.
Even the amounts of the allowed synthetic pigments that can be added to foods are restricted.
Therefore, it must be recognized that it can never be too soon to find suitable natural pigments and to apply them to food processes.
As natural sources for pigments, animals, plants, and microorganisms can all be taken into consideration.
In the connection, the manufacture of natural pigments from animals or plants is affected by the limited amounts of the pigments, by their costs, and by the conditons of cultivation.
The production of pigments by microbial processes, however, seems to hold the answer to these problems.
Historically, molds belonging to the genus Monascus have been used in the fermentative production of red wine from steamed hulled-rice and red soybean cheese in countries like China, Japan, and Indonesia.
Nowadays, studies concerning the applications of pigments to food processes are actively underway in many countries