What item is a product of fermentation?

The correct choice is grounded in the process of fermentation, which involves the metabolic conversion of sugar to acids, gases, or alcohol using microorganisms such as bacteria, yeast, or fungi. Cheese and yogurt are prominent examples of fermented foods.

In the case of yogurt, specific bacterial cultures are added to milk to ferment the lactose (milk sugar), producing lactic acid that thickens the milk and gives yogurt its distinctive tangy flavor. Cheese production also depends on fermentation where bacteria and sometimes molds are utilized to curdle milk and develop flavor and texture.

While other options involve some form of processing, they do not specifically result from the fermentation process. Rice and wheat are main staple grains but don’t inherently undergo fermentation in their traditional forms. Juice and smoothies are typically made from fresh fruits and do not involve fermentation. Pickles and vinegar are indeed products of fermentation, but they specifically derive from cucumbers (in the case of pickles) and do not represent the broader category of dairy products created through fermentation as effectively as cheese and yogurt do. Thus, cheese and yogurt remain the clearest example of fermentation.