The size of native milk fat globules affects physico-chemical and functional properties of Emmental cheese

Abstract

Emmental cheeses were produced using either small (∼3 μm, SFG) or large (∼6 μm, LFG) native milk fat globules obtained by a patented microfiltration process. Ripened SFG cheeses were less flexible and less firm than LFG cheeses. Indeed, the SFG cheeses contained more moisture and underwent greater proteolysis than the LFG cheeses 52 d after manufacture. However, lipolysis was three-fold lower in SFG cheeses. This was linked to the milk fat structure in Emmental cheese: larger inclusions of denuded destabilized fat were observed in LFG cheeses, whereas more fat globules were observed in SFG cheeses. One Emmental cheese was produced using homogenized milk fat globules, in which lipolysis was dramatically increased and unacceptable. For a given size range, the structure of milk fat is thus of tremendous importance regarding lipolysis and small natural milk fat globules cannot be replaced by homogenized ones. The melting temperature and solid fat content of fat in Emmental cheese increased with native fat globule size. This is related to the improved functional properties of SFG cheeses, i.e., increased stretching, elastic increase and melting, and lower extrusion force compared with LFG cheeses. This study confirms, as previously pioneered using Camembert cheese manufacturing technology, that the use of native milk fat globules with different sizes can lead to a range of new dairy products with different physico-chemical and functional properties.