Kimchi’s role in collaborative science
August 19, 2025
Scientists and chefs have collaborated on a new study that demonstrates how fermented foods can be used to drive participatory science projects that both engage the public and advance our understanding of microbial ecology. The study focused on working with food experts and the public to examine the microbial communities associated with kombucha, kimchi and chow chow.
“One of the things we demonstrated here is that this approach works, it’s relatively inexpensive, and it is easy to scale,” says Erin McKenney of North Carolina State University, co-author of a paper on the work.
“This proof-of-concept study focused on questions that have been answered using conventional approaches, allowing us to determine that the findings from our approach are consistent with established findings,” McKenney says. “But now that we have that proof of concept, we can begin using this technique to address additional questions.”
For the study, the researchers hosted three participatory science workshops at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in which scientists and chefs instructed K-12 teachers and members of the public on how to make fermented foods. Each workshop focused on a specific fermented food: kimchi, chow chow and kombucha.
Co-authors Julie Horvath (Museum, NC State, UNC) and Christina Roche (Museum, NC State) were both working in the Museum’s Genomics & Microbiology Research Lab when the experiments were performed. “After the workshops, we continued to collaborate with the larger group to write up the results,” says Horvath. “This was a fun way to engage the public in science related to their health, and their daily lives.”
While workshop participation varied, the researchers ended up with 18-23 samples of each fermented product.
Liquid samples were taken from each of the fermented foods at different points, to see how the microbial communities in each sample changed as the fermentation progressed. Samples were taken from chow chow and kimchi on days 3 and 10; kombucha samples were taken on days 4 and 8.
The researchers conducted DNA sequencing of each sample to get a snapshot of both the diversity and overall abundance of microbes in the sample.
“The findings were interesting,” says Hanna Berman, co-author (NC State). “For example, we found kimchi made with cabbage fosters very different microbial communities compared to kimchi made with daikon radishes. In kombucha, on the other hand, there were no microbial species associated specifically with green tea versus black tea – which come from the same species of plant but are processed differently.
“These findings are in line with previous studies, and it was exciting to see that we were able to answer scientific questions accurately using methods that are also effective at engaging the public,” Berman says.
“The whole concept of helping people understand the diversity of microbes and microbial ecosystems is important,” says Roche. “It’s also important to help people understand the beneficial roles that microbes play in our food systems. And we think there is very real value in scientists and chefs coming together to give people tools that can help them explore those ideas on their own and, as an added bonus, produce delicious food.”
“Developing techniques that both advance our scientific understanding of the world and engage the public in scientific endeavors is critical to the mission of both science museums and land-grant universities,” says McKenney. “That makes this work particularly rewarding for everyone involved in this project.”
“We included the recipes that were used for the study in the paper, so if anyone wants to try their hand at making chow chow, kombucha or kimchi, that could serve as a good starting point,” says Roche.
The paper, “Cooking-Class Style Fermentation as a Context for Co-created Science and Engagement,” is published open access in the journal Microbiology Spectrum.
– Matt Shipman, NC State –
For more information about our upcoming activities, conservation news and groundbreaking research, follow @NaturalSciences on Instagram and Facebook.