The objective of the study was to determine, using a GC/MS method, the volatile compounds in the coriander essential oils extracted from coriander seeds by two methods, and to determine their effect on the growth of selected bacteria strains of the Lactobacillus genus. The essential oils were produced by a steam distillation method with the use of a straight distillation set and in a Deryng apparatus. 31 compounds were identified in the essential oil extracted by the first method and 25 compounds in the oil from the Deryng apparatus. The essential oil obtained by the straight distillation contained such compounds as: linalool (31.80 %), camphor (11.88 %), geranyl acetate (8.29 %), geraniol (7.28 %), limonene (7.81 %), and γ-terpinene (6.45 %). The oil extracted using the Deryng apparatus was characterized by the highest percent content of linalool (48.89 %), camphor (10.50 %), geranyl acetate (9.69 %), and p-cymene (6.60 %). A well diffusion method was applied to assess the activity of those oils against the strains of lactic acid bacteria. It was found that the size of the zones of the growth inhibition of tested bacterial strains depended on the concentration of the essential oils used. The sizes of those zones ranged between 0.1 ÷ 5.8 mm. The coriander essential oils used at the concentrations above 50 % inhibited the growth of all the tested strains of lactic acid bacteria. When the concentrations of coriander essential oils used were below 50 %, the oils affected only some selected bacterial strains of the Lactobacillus genus.