The glycolytic fermentation beginning with the anaerobic conversion of glucose to pyruvate by the glycolytic pathway, followed by pyruvate:formate lyase (PFL) activity. This pathway is found in facultative anaerobes such as E. coli. [ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20692761 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20395274 ]