Modified atmosphere packaging for cottage cheese

Traditional packaging of processed cheese consisted of triangular portions packaged in tinfoil (97% tin, 3% antimony and traces of lead, copper and iron) because of its resistance to corrosion by processing salts.

In case of cottage cheese, it has a very short shelf-life of about 21-28 days under even proper refrigerated conditions. The primary cause of spoilage is the growth of psychrotrophs and Gram-negative bacteria, which results in the production of undesirable flavors and turns the curd slimy.

Modified atmosphere packaging has been applied to successfully prolong the shelf-life of cottage cheese and improve the shelf-life of sliced and shredded cheeses.

The shelf-life of cottage cheese, without chemical preservatives, stored at 3-4 °C is about 14-21 days. Flushing the headspace (25%) of commercial packages of cottage cheese with pure CO2 extended the shelf-life at 8 °C without altering the sensory properties or causing any other negative effects.
Modified atmosphere packaging for cottage cheese

Soft curd farmer cheese

True farmer cheese is a soft fresh curd cheese that is firm enough to slice; it has a mild, tangy flavor. This soft, spreadable white cheese makes a good low fat substitute for cream cheese. Brands made with skim milk have about 3 grams of fat ounce compared with cream cheese’s 10 grams.

Soft curd farmer cheese may be used in dips, spreads, cheesecakes, frostings, fillings and many other recipes. Some brands are made with whole milk. Farmer cheese is a form of cottage cheese that was developed in America. Cottage cheese has origins in central and Eastern Europe and as with many cheeses, was brought to America by immigrants.

This cheese went by the name “New York cheese” or “country-style cottage cheese” and then became more widely known as a farmer cheese. Farmer cheese can be found in specialty cheese departments. It can be eaten within a week of being freshly pressed or dried to a crumbly texture and stored for a month or more.
Soft curd farmer cheese

Cottage cheese production

Cottage cheese is a nutritious food product which when properly made and cared for, is valued highly by the consuming public.

In a vat, skim milk and a predetermined amount culture are added. The material is then heated, cooked and cured. As soon as the desired acidity has developed, the curd is cut or broken and then cooked or heated until it is of the desired firmness.

The whey is drained and the curd is washed with water. The curds are washed 2-3 times with water to remove excess lactose and lactic acid, thereby stabilizing cord pH and to cool the curd.

The curd is mixed with a batch of dressing and is subsequently fed to the fillers. A popular type of cottage cheese is the mildly acid, large-grained product commonly known as low-acid rennet cottage cheese, or popcorn cheese or sweet curd cottage cheese.

The cooling/washing, drainage, creaming and packaging operations of commercial cottage cheese manufacture have undergone large-scale automation and semi-continuous multi-batch production is now normal practice.
Cottage cheese production

Milk quality for production of cottage cheese

This soft unripe cheese is made from skim milk (or reconstituted dry skim milk in some countries) using lactic acid bacteria and a small amount if any rennet.

High quality Grade A skim milk must be used to make cottage cheese curds because:
*It is the law
*High-quality cheese cannot be made from interior milk
*Fat softens the curd

The incoming raw milk must be of high quality with regard to aroma, flavor, titrable acidity (TA, between 0.12 and 0.16), total solids, microbial counts (ideally less than 50,000 per mL).

In addition to the microbial quality of the milk, its dry matter content is important on relation to product quality and yield.

For use in the production of cottage cheese, milk is usually pasteurized to inactivate pathogenic and spoilage bacteria that may be present.
Milk quality for production of cottage cheese

Cottage cheese

Cottage cheese is a high protein low-fat cheese prepared form curdles milk (curds).  It is usually thought of as a ‘diet’ food, cottage cheese is a healthful food choice when it is made from skim or low-fat milk.

Cottage cheese only retains 25 to 50 percent of the calcium from the milk it is made from, due to the processing. The curdling process leaches calcium from the curds into the liquid called whey, which is removed. The higher the water content of cheeses, such as cottage cheese, the sooner they will go bad.

The total solid (TS) content of the skim milk is often increased to 10-13% by the fortification with non-fat dry milk powder or by the addition of UF retentate.

Cottage cheese is prepared with varying amounts of fat. It is highest in creamed small curd cheese (4.2 percent fat), while low-fat cottage cheese contains 1 percent or 2 percent fat, and dry curd cottage cheese has 0.5 percent fat.
Cottage cheese