This invention relates to improvements in the fermentation process used in the production of organic acids from biological feedstock using bacterial catalysts. The improvements in the fermentation process involve providing a fermentation medium comprising an appropriate form of inorganic carbon, an appropriate amount of aeration and a biocatalyst with an enhanced ability to uptake and assimilate the inorganic carbon into the organic acids. This invention also provides, as a part of an integrated fermentation facility, a novel process for producing a solid source of inorganic carbon by sequestering carbon released from the fermentation in an alkali solution.