Identification and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Screening of Lactic Acid Bacteria from Traditional Cheese Paški Sir, Croatia

Paški sir, a hard sheep’s cheese, has been produced for decades in households on the island of Pag, Croatia, and is now manufactured under controlled conditions in local cheesemaking facilities. Extensive and ecological sheep breeding and cheese production result in low chemical input or hazards and final products with high safety properties. The aim of the study was to investigate the diversity of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in this type of production and their phenotypic profiles of antimicrobial resistance. MALDI-TOF MS identification revealed a high diversity of indigenous LAB populations, including lactobacilli, enterococci, pediococci, and lactococci, in traditional Paški sir cheese. Most isolates representing identified species showed cut-off values below the critical limits required for selecting potential probiotic strains suitable for food production.