Desenvolvimento de tecnologia de queijo tipo Minas artesanal da microrregião do Campo das Vertentes para produção industrial com emprego de leite pasteurizado

Abstract

Cheese-making tradition and quality in the state of Minas Gerais has stood out in the national scenario. The Campo das Vertentes region was officially recognized as a Minas cheese producing region by the Minas Gerais Institute of Agriculture (IMA) in 2009, with on-farm small-scale cheese making using raw milk and traditional methods. In Brazil, cheeses made from raw milk have legislative requirements that regulate marketing in the municipal, state, and federal spheres. Thus, the present study aimed to study an alternative to the dairy industry to produce cheese similar to those found in the local market, using pasteurized milk and industrial cultures, thus allowing product commercialization throughout the country under inspection. For that, after the selection of the dairy processing unit and the traditional cheese factory, located in the Campos das Vertentes region, a plan of manufacture, ripening, collection, and transport of cheeses was established together with the producers. The traditional artisanal cheese and industrial cheese produced using the technology under study were characterized for the texture profile (TPA), and physicochemical, microbiological, and sensory evaluation during 60 days of ripening. A split plot design was used, and the results were submitted to ANOVA and Tukey's test at a 5% level of significance using the SISVAR software. The use of pasteurized milk and mixed starter cultures did not affect the texture profile of the industrial cheeses after 2, 20, 40, and 60 days of ripening, when compared to the artisanal cheeses (p>0.05). Concerning the microbiological profile after 2 and 60 days of ripening, counts of coliforms at 30ºC, coliforms at 45ºC, Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria spp., and Salmonella spp. were below the limits established by the current legislation, with no significant differences between the treatments. With regard to the physicochemical characteristics, sodium chloride, moisture levels, and fixed mineral residue of cheeses were not affected after 2, 20, 40, and 60 days of ripening (p>0.05). In contrast, significant differences (p<0.05) were observed for water activity, fat, pH, total protein, extent and depth of proteolysis between the artisanal and industrial cheeses during storage. The sensory evaluation performed by the EPAMIG ILCT research team showed no significant differences for texture, salty taste, and odor between treatments (p>0.05). On the other hand, higher overall impression scores were obtained for the artisanal cheeses when compared to the industrial cheeses at 40 days of ripening. In addition, higher consistency, aroma, and flavor scores were observed at the end of ripening (60 days), while the attributes internal color and residual flavor of the artisanal cheeses exhibited higher scores after 20 days of ripening. The treatment did not affect the purchase intention (FACT) and acceptance test (hedonic scale) (p>0.05). The technology developed to make artisanal Minas cheese using pasteurized milk and industrial cultures can be an effective alternative for the dairy industry, and can generate social and economic benefits, allowing the consolidation of the state of Minas Gerais as the leading cheese producer at both the artisanal and industrial levels in Brazil.