Characteristics of Anevato Cheese made from Raw or Heat-treated Goat Milk Inoculated with a Lactic Starter

Abstract

Anevato cheese was made from raw goat milk (R), pasteurized at 72°C for 15 s (P) and thermized at 63°C for 10 min (T) using 'wild' isolates of Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis as a 'starter' from traditional Anevato cheese. Heat treatment of milk had a significant (P<0.05) effect on the level of all microbial groups; counts on cheeses T and P were similar, except for total viable counts and staphylococci.Enterobacteriaceae and coliforms were not detected in these cheese types. The use of starter improved the microbiological quality of raw milk cheese; cheese R showed lower microbial counts than the traditional Anevato cheese. The peptide pattern obtained by urea-PAGE from each cheese type at the same age was different. Casein break-down in cheese P was delayed and generally was lower than in the other cheese types. It is assumed that proteolysis in cheeses R and T is mostly dependent on the indigenous milk flora, while yeasts seem to be the main proteolytic factor in cheese P. Cheeses T and P lacked the typical flavour of raw milk cheese, although isolates from traditional raw milk Anevato cheese were used as a starter culture. © 2000 Academic Press.