Influence of the ratio of sheep and cow milk on the composition and yield efficiency of lećevački cheese

Abstract

Lećevački cheese is a traditional Croatian hard cheese, which belongs to the group of hard Mediterranean cheeses produced from mixed milk (cow and sheep). The aim of this research was to determine the influence of different ratios and compositions of sheep milk on the composition and yield of Lećevački cheese. A total of 15 batches of Lećevački cheese were selected containing different ratios of sheep and cow milk from the regular production of a dairy plant. The ratio of sheep milk was as follows: up to 39%, from 40 to 44%, and from 45 to 50%. For each ratio, five batches were randomly selected. A higher ratio of sheep milk caused a noticeable increase in fat, protein, lactose, and total solids content, while the content of solids-not-fat significantly (p < 0.05) increased. A similar trend was found for casein content (p < 0.1). The highest ratio of sheep milk in mixed milk increased (p < 0.05) the protein content by almost 1%. However, the results showed that it is not reasonable to increase the sheep milk ratio in mixed milk above 44% (v/v) because it causes a higher (p < 0.01) moisture content in the cheese, as well as a lower fat content (p < 0.01) and fat recovery (p = 0.07) during the manufacturing of Lećevački cheese.