J.A. Centeno

Chemical and biochemical study of industrially produced San Simón da Costa smoked semi-hard cow's milk cheeses: Effects of storage under vacuum and different modified atmospheres.

Two batches of smoked, semi-hard (ripened for 45 d) San Simón da Costa cows milk cheeses with Protected Designation of Origin were used to investigate the chemical, biochemical, and sensorial parameters that may be affected by modified-atmosphere packaging. Cheeses were packaged for 45 d as follows: vacuum packaging, packaging in 100% N(2), packaging in a gas mixture of 20% CO(2)/80% N(2), and packaging in a gas mixture of 50% CO(2)/50% N(2). The San Simón da Costa cheeses were characterized by high contents of lactic, oxalic, and citric organic acids. The main free amino acids found were isoleucine, phenylalanine, serine, valine, lysine, and glutamic acid, and the most abundant volatile compounds included ethanol, diacetyl, 2-butanol, isopropyl alcohol, furfural, acetaldehyde, 2-butanone, acetone, and 2-methylfuran. Modified atmospheres appeared to alter the ripening processes by affecting lipolysis, as indicated by the lower concentrations of butyric and propionic acids compared with control cheeses. In addition, modified-atmosphere packaging altered the proteolysis processes, yielding higher amounts of branched-chain alcohols. The results revealed that storage under modified atmosphere contributes to the accumulation of several compounds probably derived from smoke, including aldehydes such as 2-furancarboxaldehyde (furfural), alcohols such as 2-methoxyphenol (guaiacol), ketones such as 2-cyclopenten-1-one, and esters such as methyl furancarboxylate, which were negatively correlated with flavor. Vacuum packaging was the most useful technique in terms of preserving the sensory quality of San Simón da Costa Protected Designation of Origin cheeses. Considering the current demands for packaged portions of food at the distribution and retail levels and the potential health risks associated with some smoke-derived compounds usually present in some smoked foods, the results obtained in this study may be of special interest to the cheese industry.

Antibiotic Resistance in Lactic Acid Bacteria and Micrococcaceae/Staphylococcaceae Isolates from Artisanal Raw Milk Cheeses, and Potential Implications on Cheese Making

Antibiotic susceptibility against 19 antimicrobial agents was evaluated in isolates of the genera Lactococcus (46 isolates), Leuconostoc (22), Lactobacillus (19), Staphylococcus (8), Enterococcus (7), and Microccoccus/Kocuria (5) obtained from the predominant microflora of nonrecent and recent types of artisanal raw cows milk cheeses. Beta-lactams showed broad activity against all genera, although leuconostocs and lactobacilli were highly resistant to oxacillin (80% to 95.5%). Resistance to aminoglycosides was frequent for lactococci and enterococci (particularly for streptomycin), whereas lower rates of resistance were detected for lactobacilli and leuconostocs. Technologically interesting traits for the food industry were distributed among isolates that showed different degrees of resistance to common antibiotics. However, isolates showing resistance to less than 2 antibiotics were mainly those with properties of greatest technological interest (acidifying activity, proteolytic/lipolytic activities, or diacetyl production).

A comparative biochemical study of two industrially produced short-ripened cow's milk cheeses with PDO status: Rennet-curd Tetilla cheese and acid-curd Cebreiro cheese

The aim of this study was to characterise industrial Tetilla and Cebreiro Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) Spanish cheeses from a biochemical point of view and to relate some of the biochemical parameters to the cheesemaking process. Some differences in the amounts of organic acids and free amino acids between the two types of cheese were attributed to milk characteristics and the processing technology. The most abundant volatile compounds in both types of cheese were ethanol, isopropanol and diacetyl. The simple and nonspecific volatile profiles of the cheeses appear to be related to the commercial mesophilic DL-starters used in the manufacturing process.