The substrate for the fermentation is a carbohydrate, usually molasses or a sugar, such as raw beet, refined beet, or cane sugars, or a syrup. … Certain inorganic nutrients, such as ammonium nitrate, potassium phosphate, magnesium sulfate, zinc sulfate, and potassium ferrocyanide, are added. The pH is adjusted to between 3 and 7, depending on the carbohydrate source. Sterilization may be batchwise or continuous; the latter uses less energy and is usually faster. After sterilization, the temperature is adjusted as required. The surface of the sterile substrate in the pans is inoculated with A. niger spores, which germinate and cover the surface of the liquid with a mat of mold. After two to three days the surface is completely covered and citric acid production begins, continuing at almost a constant rate until 80-90% of the sugar is consumed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspergillus_niger
Edit: I’m going to add the wikipedia page for citric acid since someone pointed out that I was confusing the two.
Citric acid occurs in a variety of fruits and vegetables, most notably citrus fruits. Lemons and limes have particularly high concentrations of the acid; it can constitute as much as 8% of the dry weight of these fruits (about 47 g/L in the juices[11]).[a] The concentrations of citric acid in citrus fruits range from 0.005 mol/L for oranges and grapefruits to 0.30 mol/L in lemons and limes; these values vary within species depending upon the cultivar and the circumstances under which the fruit was grown. Source
Don’t give landlords ideas. “That black mold is going into cleaning solution! You should be honored!”
Right? I hadn’t thought of that. I just always thought *citric acid was you know, made of citrus.
I think you’re trying to say “citric acid.”
I think you’re right, lol. I was reading a blog that was trying to sell herbal remedies and was talking about how it was originally from citrus and I think I confused the two names. It turned out to be true information since I used their source for NIH.