Abstract
The improvement of soy sauce fermentation is restricted by the insufficient information on bacterial community. In this study, bacterial communities in the koji and mash stage were compared based on next-generation sequencing technology. A total of 29 genera were identified in the koji stage, while 34 in the mash stage. After koji stage, 7 genera disappeared and 12 new genera appeared in the mash stage. The dominant bacteria were Kurthia, Weissella and Staphylococcus in the koji stage and Staphylococcus, Kurthia, Enterococcus and Leuconostoc in the mash stage. The results provided insights into the microbial communities involved in soy sauce fermentation.