Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT
(N/A)
BURLINGTON,VT 05405
Performing Department
Nutritional Sciences
Non Technical Summary
Traditional hand crafted artisan cheeses are expensive to produce and therefore must command high prices in the marketplace in order to be sustainable. To do so, these cheeses must be clearly differentiated from lower cost mass-produced alternatives in ways that inspire consumers to pay value-added prices. Enthusiasts of traditional artisan cheeses savor the unusual and often-singular characteristics of artisan cheeses, especially when specific characteristics emanate directly from either the traditional practices of the artisan cheesemaker or the natural surroundings. The latter has been studied extensively (e.g., the effect of pasture botanicals eaten by the cow, and the indigenous microflora in the milk and cheese making environment, on cheese flavor) and corresponds to what has called "a taste of place" (Trubek 2009). The effects of traditional practices are less well studied, but the proposed project seeks to advance our understanding along these lines. Specifically, the development of crystals in some of Vermont's long-aged artisan cheeses is almost certainly accentuated by the traditional practices employed in their fabrication. Therefore, the presence of crystals has that potential to differentiate artisan cheeses from mass-produced alternatives in ways that may add value, provided that genuine linkages can be established. Currently, however, the public's view of crystals is largely misinformed, and it will take some effort on the part of the research community to correct widely held misconceptions before crystallization can be used to marketing advantage. Italian scientists have been developing this approach to distinguish traditional Parmigiano Regginano cheese from mass-produced Parmesan copies. Vermont artisan cheese makers can benefit from a similar strategy; that is, through scientific data that support the idea that crystals can be viewed as a natural outgrowth of traditional cheesemaking and aging practices, a "signature of tradition" analogous to Trubek's "taste of place". This work is particularly timely for Vermont Cheddar cheese makers because of the increased popularity of two different niche Cheddar cheeses that seem to be very prone to crystal formation, namely very long aged (i.e., 2 to 5 year) Cheddar cheeses and so-called cloth bound Cheddar cheeses. There are now at least six Vermont cheese makers that produce traditional cloth bound Cheddar cheeses, and most of them also produce other styles of Cheddar that are aged for at least 2 years and thus are probably strong candidates for advanced crystal formation. Beyond traditional Cheddar, Vermont is home to a number other long-aged artisan cheeses that are either clothbound or natural rinded and therefore likely prone to crystallizing; these cheeses also stand to benefit from the proposed research.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The presence of harmless crystals in mass-produced cheese is almost always viewed as a defect by the industry and a source of confusion among consumers who mistake the crystals for mold growth and assume that they reflect poor quality and may pose a safety hazard. Therefore, industrial cheesemakers go to great lengths to prevent crystal formation. In many long-aged traditional artisan cheeses, however, crystals are natural occurrences that are almost certainly associated with the traditional practices that are used in artisan cheese production. Therefore, instead of being seen as defects in artisan cheeses, these harmless, odorless and tasteless crystals might be more correctly viewed as intrinsic characteristics that proudly bear witness to the traditional cheese making practices of the artisan. The proposed project seeks to identify factors that predispose some of Vermont's most crystal-prone artisan cheeses to crystal formation, and to relate them to traditional cheese making practices. The ultimate goal is to demystify crystallization so that the public's misconceptions about cheese crystals (i.e., quality defect and potential safety hazard) can be "turned upside down" with respect to traditional long-aged artisan cheeses, enabling crystals to be rightfully viewed as a natural consequence of the traditional practices that make artisan cheeses special.
Project Methods
Cheese varieties that show very high incidences of crystallization will be chosen for study to determine factors that predispose these specific varieties to crystal formation. It is anticipated that several varieties showing high incidences of calcium lactate crystals and several that are prone to tyrosine crystals will be included for study. Light microscopy and low magnification scanning electron microscopy (SEM) will be used to assess whether cheeses with heavy crystal development possess microstructural irregularities that could serve as nucleation sites that promote crystal nucleation. Mineral distribution in crystal regions will be determined by SEM/Energy Dispersive X-ray Microanalysis in order to assist in determining crystal identity, specifically to identify calcium phosphate crystals should they be present. Chemical composition (fat, moisture, salt content and pH) of cheese samples will be determined, as well as D(-) and L(+) lactate as described previously (Rajbhandari and Kindstedt, 2005). Total nitrogen and pH 4.6 soluble nitrogen will be determined by Kjeldahl methods (International Dairy Federation, 1993) to evaluate the extent of proteolysis. Tyrosine will be evaluated by the method of Mistry and Kosikowski (1983). This information will serve to identify aspects of the chemical environment that promote crystallization. Finally, detailed information about the manufacturing practices and environmental conditions employed during aging will be obtained from producers who agree to provide this information. From this information, a profile of manufacturing and aging practices that contribute to the structural and chemical characteristics that predispose the cheese to crystal formation will generated for each cheese variety. The end result will be a data base that explains why many traditional Vermont artisan cheeses are naturally prone to crystal formation.