Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02240~33 1998-06-1~
W097/22259 PCT~B96/01482
~c~ AN~ PRO~U~l-lON
The present invention relates to the production o~
cheese. The invention permits the production of cheese of a
conventional acceptable texture and taste at significantly
lower fat content than usual, and of cheese of a conventional
higher fat content with better ~han usual taste and texture.
The invention provides a process for producing cheese
which comprises providing low-fat cheese milk, converting the
cheese milk to low fat fromage ~rais and bl~n~; ng the
resulting fromage frais with cream, characterised by (i)
homogenising at least part of the cheese milk [preferably at
high pressure e.g. o~ at least 10 Mpa (100 bar)] before its
conversion to fromage frais and/or (ii) using fatting cream
which is enriched with membrane substance and homogenized
~preferaby at high pressure, e.g. at least 10 Mpa].
The cheese milk suitably has a fat v/v content of up to 2~,
e.g. 0.5 to 2~. The cheese milk suitably contains at least
one fat selected from milk fat, other ~n;m~l fats and
vegetable fats, preferably selected from milk fat, anhydrous
milk fat, fractionated milk fat, decholesterized milk ~at,
butter, other ~n;mil fats and vegetable fats (natural and/or
hardened and/or de-odorized). The cheese milk may consist of
or include (partially) skimmed milk and/or buttermilk; it may
include one or more of butter serum, cream serum, and whole
milk; pre~erably it i8 selected from (partially) skimm~d milk,
buttermilk, mixtures thereof, and mixtures of any of these
with butter serum and/or cream serum. The cheese milk may be
a li~uid or mixture of liquids as initially obt~;n~ (e.g.
~rom milk or cream or butter), or it may be partly or wholly
reconstituted. The cheese milk is preferably used untreated,
CA 02240~33 l998-06-l~
W097/22259 PCTnB96/01482
0 as initially obtained, but in other embodiments at least part
of it is pressure homogenized (e.g. at 4 to 400 MPa)
optionally after heat treatment below its boiling point (e.g.
at 50 to 80~C). When the cheese milk is to be a mixture of
milk fractions, then just one or some of these (or just part
5 ~: of the mixture of all fractions) may be homogenized before
mixing with the r~m~;n~r to form the cheese milk. When the
cheese milk comprises membrane substance-enriched fraction(s),
some or all of the latter is preferably homogenized before
mixing with any r~m~;n;ng cheese milk component; for example
when the cheese milk is to contain (partially) skimmed milk
plus one or more such enriched fractions, some or all of a
membrane substance-enriched component may be homogenized
before mixing with (partially) skimmed milk and any r~m~;n;ng
component.
The cheese milk can be converted to fromage frais using
conventional starter culture, rennet and processing steps, and
the fat content of the resulting cheese is increased by m;~;ng
it with cream - e.g. of 10 to 30~ fat content.
According to the invention either or both of the low fat
cheese milk (or part thereof) and the blending cream is/are
pressure homogenized. The homogenisation pressure in each
case is most suitably at least lO Mpa, and may be 15, 20, 25
25 ~ or even 40 Mpa. When the cheese milk or part thereof is
homogenized, conventional cream may be u~ed for fatting the
fromage frais, though homogenized (preferably membrane
substance-enriched) cream can be employed instead. When the
cheese milk is not homogenized, then the fatting cream is -
preferably after enrichment with membrane substance. Such
enriched cream is e.g. a cream of normal membrane substance
content diluted with li~uid enriched in membrane substance
(e.g. diluted with one or more of buttermilk, butter serum and
. .
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W097/22259 PCT~B96/01482
o cream serum) or a cream reconstituted from fat(s) and such
enriched liquid, or from fat(s), membrane substance and water.
Thus one may first provide or prepare a cream-type fat- in-
water emulsion, this usually having a fat content of 10-60
weight percent, e.g. 30-50 weight percent. This emulsion may
be a normal cream or an emulsion prepared from water and any
one, two or more of fats selected from milk fat, anhydrous
milk ~at, fractionated milk fat, decholesterized milk fat,
butter, other ~ntm~l fats and vegetable fat (natural and/or
hardened and/or de-odorized). The ~at content of this
emulsion is then reduced (e.g. to from 10-30 weight percent),
and its content of membrane substance is increased, by adding
thereto material enriched in membrane substance - e.g. one or
more of buttermilk, butter serum and cream serum (butter or
cream minus at least most of the fat); when cream serum is
employed it is pre~erably made from a cream with a ~at content
of from 10-82 weight percent. In another type of embo~;m~nt,
the enriched cream is formed by emulsifying fat (e.g. one or
more selected from milk fat, fractionated milk ~at, anhydrous
milk fat, de-cholesterolized milk fat, butter, other ~n;m~l
fats and vegetable fats), optionally at elevated temperature
below the boiling point (e.g. 50-80~C), with membrane
substance-enriched liquid (e.g. one or more o~ natural and
reconstituted buttermilk, butter and cream sera, and membrane
substance and water).
The homogenisation of cream for fatting the initially
formed cheese is at high pressure, e.g. at 4-40 MPa,
preferably at least 10 Mpa, and most pre~erably 15-25 MPa. The
high pressure homogenization, partic~larly in the presence of
~nh~nced levels of membrane substance, gives significant
increase in globular fat surface without undesirable
homogenization of the milk solid non-fat whilst maintl;n;ng
the increased fat surface covered by the membrane substance
CA 02240~33 l998-06-l~
W097/22259 PCT~B96/01482
0 present. When the cheese milk is not enriched in membrane
substance, then the fatting cream should be so enriched before
homogenisation; when the cheese milk is so enriched, then the
fatting cream will usually still be so enriched before
homogenisation, but this may be to a lesser extent. Most
preferably the amount of mem!brane substance (from cheese milk
and/or fatting cream) should be su~ficient to cover all fat
globule 6urface area in the fatted cheese product. The cream
for fatting the initially formed cheese can be heat-treated
below its boiling point (e.g. at 50-80~C) before the pressure
homogenisation, but it is usually preferred to avoid this;
without such heating, the proportion of water in the fatted
cheese may remain higher without affecting taste, texture or
quality.
Herein, ~enriched in (or with) membrane substance" and
equivalent expres~ions have their normal m~n;ng of having a
higher membrane substance to fat ratio than natural whole
milk. Butter and cream serum are butter and cream minus some
(usually most) or all of the fat. The term "fat" herein
includes oil where appropriate, e.g. in the case of vegetable
oil. Herein, in accord with conventional usage, % fat for
cheese means the wt.~ of fat in the total dry matter content
of the cheese, whereas for all other materials (e.g. for
cream, cheese milk etc.) the ~ fat means the vol.~ of fat in
the material. ~erein ~(partially) 6kimmed milk" means
partially or fully skimmed milk.
The invention is illustrated by the following working
Examples.
P!~MPT~
Dairy cream with a fat content of 40 weight percent was
diluted with cream serum (obtained by Le.-,vvdl of fat from
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W097/22259 PCT~B96101482
0 another batch o~ the same cream) to a fat content o~ 20 weight
percent. The diluted cream, not subjected to any heat
treatment, was homogenized at a pressure o~ 20 MPa.
T~MPr.~ 2 :
Example l was repeated using for dilution, instead of
the initially ~ormed liquid cream serum, the dried and
powdered serum plus water.
~ AMPT.T;~ 3
Low-~at fromage frais, which is ~atted a~terwards with
cream, is produced as ~ollows :
ITnho~ogenized skimmed milk is used as the cheese milki
l~ mesophyllic starter culture and rennet (1-2 ml ~or lOOe
cheese-making milk) are added at 26-28~C and a~ter 16-20 hours
~ermentation the curds are stirred and separated ~rom the whey
with a Quark centri~uge. A low-fat frQmage frai~ is ob~;ne~
with about 20 wt.~ solids, which is then ~atted to 20 wt.~
total ~ats in the dry matter with the homogenized diluted
(20~) cream obtained as described in Example l.
The Example is repeated using homogenized diluted cream
obtained as in Example 2.
In each case the product fromage frais is comparable to
a fromage frais ~atted with a conventional cream to 40~ total
fats.
R~MPT.~! 4
A low-~at cheese-making milk is produced by the
~ollowing method :
An 1lnhnmngenized mixture o~ equal parts buttermilk and
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W097~22~9 PCT~B96/01482
0 cream serum is mixed with four times the amount of sk; mm~
milk. The cheese-making milk thus obtained is adjusted to the
fermentation temperature of 25~C and mesophyllic starter
culture and rennet (O.5 ml for looe cheese-making milk) are
added. The fermentation time amounts to 16-20 hours, until a
pH of 4.5 is reached.
After stirring the curds and heating to 40-42~C,
ultrafiltration is effected to a dry weight of 20~ in the
concentrate.
The fromage frais thus obt~;n~ is in the low-fat range
(about 5 wt.~ total fats in the dry matter). This ~romage
frais is fatted with homogenized diluted cream as obtained in
Example 1 to a fromage frais with higher fat c~nt~nt, which is
superior in taste and texture to a fromage frais which has
been fatted with conventional cream. Similar results are
obtained using homogenized diluted cream obtained as in
Example 2.
~AMPT.R 5
Example 3 is repeated using as cheese milk an
nh~genized 50/50 mixture of skimmed milk and cream serum.
R~r AMPT .~ 6
~ow-fat fromage frais, which is fatted afterwards with
cream, is produced as follows:
~k; mm~ milk, in one embodiment untreated and in another
heat treated at 65-75~C, is homogenized at lO MPa; 1~
mesophyllic starter culture and rennet (1-2 ml for lOOe
cheese-making milk) are then added at 26-28~C and after 16-20
hours fermentation, the curds are stirred and separated from
the whey with a Quark centrifuge. In each case a low-fat
CA 02240~33 1998-06-1~
W097/22259 PCT~B96/01482
O fromage frais is obtained with about 20 wt.~ solids, which is
then fatted to 20 wt.~ total fats in the dry matter with
diluted [20~] cream obtained a~ ~ollows.
Dairy cream with fat content of 40 wt.~ was diluted with
cream serum (obt~n~ by removal of fat from another batch of
the same cream) to a fat content of 20 wt.~. The diluted
cream was heated at 60~C with stirriny and then homogenized at
a pressure of 20 MPa.
In each case the f~omage frais is comparable to a
fromage frais fatted with a conventional cream to 40~ total
fats. Similar results are obtained when the cream diluent i8
not the initially formed liquid cream serum, but the dried and
powdered serum plu8 water.
~LE 7
A low-fat cheese-making milk is produced by the
following method :
A mixture o~ equal parts buttermilk and cream serum is
heated to 70~C and homogenized at lO MPa. This mixture is
diluted with four times the amount of sk;mm~ milk. The
cheese-mlk~ng milk thus obtained is heated to 93~C for 5 min,
then cooled to the fermentation temperature of 25~C and
mesophyllic starter culture and rennet (0.5 ml for lOOQ cheese-
making milk) are added. The fermentation time amounts to 16-
20 hours, until a pH of 4.5 i8 reached.
After stirring the curds and heating to 40-42~C,
ultrafiltration is effected to a dry weight of 20~ in the
concentrate.
The fromage frais thus obtained in the low-fat range
CA 02240~33 1998-06-1~
W097~2259 PCT~B96/01482
0 (about 5 wt.~ total fats in the dry matter) is blended with
diluted cream as in Example 6 to a fromage frais with 20~ fat
content.
ll!~MpT.~! 8
~ow-fat fromage frais of about 5 wt.~ fat in dry matter
i6 made as in Example 7, and blended to about 20 wt.~ fat
content with conventional (neither unhomogenized nor membrane
substance-enriched) cream of 35 wt.~ fat content. The Example
was repeated using conventional 45 wt.~ content cream.
In both cases the resulting fatted cheese was superior
in taste and texture to corresponding fatted cheeses made
using low-fat fromage frais from nnhomogenized cheese milk
(whether the latter is simple skimmed milk or of the
15 ~ buttermilk/serum/skimmed milk composition of Example 7).
In practice of the invention, advantage and improvement
in the fatted product can be obt~;ne~ by homogenising either
the low-fat cheese milk (or part thereof, especially a
membrane substance enriched part thereof) - which can
repartition the membrane substance to result in better final
taste - or the ~atting cream. The better advantage is given
by h~.,.oyellising the fatting cream (enriched as and if
necessary with membrane substance), and best advantage can be
gained by homogenising both cheese milk (or part thereof) and
fatting cream Ipreferably enriched with ...~ ane substance).
