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Asked by spacerocketgrow ·May 1, 2020 ·23.7k readers

White mold on Ferment Fruit Juice (mango)

Hi ! I did the Ferment Fruit Juice recipe and at the end some white mold appeared on top of it(7 days after, temperature between 23 and 27 Celsius). This is good or bad ? the FFJ still smells delicious and sorry for the newbie question, if you care to elaborate more it will help a lot. Thanks !

fermented-fruit-juice

Top answer

From the KNF library

From the KNF library Drafted by Claude from Office Hours and the books · Sep 2026 · 4 sources

Drake's library says white wispy mold on fermenting plant juice is fine and usually yeast. Avoid red or black mold. Pour off the liquid, not the top layer. (Office Hours Ep. 132, 42:16)

Your timing is normal. The recipe ferments for 3 to 14 days, and the warmer the air, the quicker it goes. Seven days at 23 to 27 Celsius sits inside that range. Pour off and keep the liquid in a breathable container. (KNF Demystified, p. 37)

Drake reads white mold on bamboo shoot and banana flower ferments as a sign fermentation finished abnormally fast. Move it into storage. (Office Hours Ep. 63, 59:52) The library says this for those ferments, not for fruit juice.

If mold keeps coming back, look at your jar. For a LAB ferment, the library blames too much airspace and too little sugar, meaning no sugar ring at the bottom. (Office Hours Ep. 49, 16:27) The library says this about LAB, not FFJ.

The library does not say how to tell yeast from harmful mold beyond color.

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