The aim of the study was to determine the dietary fibre content and its fractional composition in white head cabbage cultivars of different maturity earliness and also in fermented cabbage (sauerkraut) after several months of storage, as well as the level of fibre and its composition in sauerkraut in relation to the method of fermentation.
It was found that there were significant differences in fibre content and its fractions composition among the white cabbage cultivars studied. The early cultivar Tekila F1, had a lower total fibre content and smaller cellulose and pectin fractions than the later-maturing cultivars, Tolerator F1 and Agresor F1. The fermented cabbage, as compared with the raw material, contained a significantly larger cellulose fraction, a significantly reduced pectin fraction, slightly reduced amounts of hemicelluloses, and a similar amount of lignin. There was no obvious effect of inoculating cabbage with starter cultures containing strains of