Production and Consumer Acceptance of Latin American White Cheese

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Abstract
Latin American white cheese was produced by direct acidification of whole milk to pH 4.7-4.8 at 82.degree. C. In a typical trial, whole milk (2730 kg) was heated to 82.degree. C in a cheese vat. Citric acid solution (5.9 kg/60 l water) was blended to precipitate the curd. Following whey draining, the curd was mixed with 8 kg of salt. After pressed overnight at 2.8 kg/cm2, the cheese blocks were held at 15.5.degree. C for 3 wk for texture improvement. Cheese yield averaged 13.36%. Flavor, texture, slicing and frying characteristics were excellent in cheese containing 48-50% moisture, 21-22% fat, 20-21% protein and a pH of 5.0. Based on a 5-point Hedonic scale, 65% of the 848 consumers reported they "like the test cheese very much" or "quite well" while 31% reported "it was acceptable". The most popular possible use indicated was as a snack (72%), followed by use on pizza (46%), in a salad (31%) and as an ingredient in a cooked product (21%). A realtively short ripening time of 3 wk, a significantly higher yield and potential savings inprocessing time associated with Latin American white cheese offer attractive economic advantages to the cheese manufacturer.

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