cheese

by Steve Funk | Senior Cheese Technologist at Nelson-Jameson

Cultures and enzymes are biological catalysts for dairy product production, but they’re also catalysts for the dairy industry as a whole. These hard-working elements work quietly behind the scenes to strengthen the industry’s brand reputation, increase dairy product market share, and delight consumers. 

As the industry continues to adapt to changes and face new and long-standing challenges, cultures and enzymes help dairy advocates respond with answers. The trend toward plant-based alternatives is answered with vegetarian enzymes. Interest in health and wellness is answered with cultures that stimulate the probiotic benefits of yogurts, kefirs, and other cultured dairy. Here are five ways that cultures and enzymes are helping dairy processors.  

Consumer Trends: Year after year, dairy processors aim to strike a balance between tradition and innovation. Consumers

Maxiren® XDS and Nelson-Jameson make a GOUDA couple!

You FETA BRIE-LIEVE IT!

And yes, we are together for the long haul.

Maxiren® XDS is a fermentation produced chymosin (FPC) that protects, preserves, and optimizes the required coagulant in the cheese process helping cheese reach its full potential of GRATE taste and big smiles. There is an increase of flexibility in the cheese production when Maxiren® XDS is involved. This extraordinary coagulant has a high specificity which lowers the amount of coagulant required, and aids in slowing the breakdown of cheese proteins, resulting in enhanced cheese textures. The enriched texture maintains a longer shelf life which allows shredding, slicing, and dicing to be smooth, natural, and more efficient through different cheese stages.

In recent months, it has come to our attention that there has been an increase in quality problems caused by Heterofermentative lactic bacteria that are not from starter cultures. These bacteria have been found growing on biofilms in the pasteurizer regen section of milk HTST’s, in some silage inoculants, in dairy powders and liquids used to fortify milk for cheesemaking, and on individual farms with certain cleaning issues. Once these are in the milk, they can’t be removed by pasteurization and will carry through into the cheese and whey powder by-products.

The Center for Dairy Research (CDR) in Madison has seen an increase in quality defects in cheese including off flavors such as “sour” gas formation in retail packages of cheese and cracking defects in blocks of cheese. Many companies are starting to include specifications for low spore count non-fat powders, liquid condensed skim and UF milk products, and also whey powders used in many other foods.

Nelson-Jameson, Inc. and DSM are proud to announce a new Delvotest® Antibiotic Residue Tests website! Geared towards meeting the needs of dairy farmers, dairy labs, and artisan/farmstead operations, the site features information on an array of kits, troubleshooting tips, and order links.

As part of our mutual commitment to food safety, Nelson-Jameson, Inc. and DSM sought to create a site where users in the Americas could learn more about the dangers of antibiotic residues in milk and how to most effectively select and utilize Delvotest® products to both protect the public health and the economic vitality of their dairy/cheese operations.

To check out the Delvotest® site you can click here, enter “nelsonjameson.com/delvotest” into your web