Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1903-08-13


periments it had been found that tn,
character of the cheese cured at tn,
: lower temperatures, 40 degrees and
so degrees, was much better than that
produced at 60 degrees. Perhaps IL
would have been better for the pur.
pose of the experiment if the cold.
cured cheese could have been com
pared with the same make of cheese
cured under the widely variable con-
ditions which prevail in most factories,
where often the maximum tenn
perature is in tAe neighborhood of so
degrees F. and fluctuates 20 degrees
or more. But this comparison was
made with the very best conditions
that obtain in factories provided with
sub-earth ducts, and other means OF
temperature control. In such cases a
temperature of 60 degrees can be
maintained with a fair degree of
I constancy. The experiments therefore
compare the cold curing process with
the best prevailing conditions.
The experiments were conducted
under favorable conditions and with
the utmost care for accuracy. The re-
suits were found of great interest and
commercial value. They are sum-
married. in the conclusion of the
bulletin as follows:
Influence of When
cheese are cold-cured, the losses due
to shrinkage in weight are greatly
reduced over what occurs under
ordinary factory conditions. In these
experiments the actual temperatures
employed were on the average as fol-
lows: SOS degrees, 400 degrees and
5S.5 degrees F. Cheese cured at the
lowest temperature decreased in
weight in ninety days from LA per
cent while that cured at the inter-
mediate and higher temperatures lost
fully three times as much. This
amount would be still further in
creased if comparison was made be,
existing factory conditions. Under
prevailing factory practice cheese are
sold at a much earlier date than is
advisable with cold-cured goods, but
the loss under the present conditions,
for even as brief a curing period as
twenty days, is fully four times as
great as has occurred in these ex-
periments in ninety day period (the
minimum curing period recommended)
under cold-curing conditions Gao deg
n q lyi ory
500 pounds of cheese daily would
average not less than fifteen pounds
of cheese per day for the entire sea
son, or considerably more than this If
only summer-made cheese were cold
cured.
Influence Of type of cheese.-In
these experiments, different types of
cheese were used, ranging from the
firm, typical cheddar to the soft,
moist quick-curing cheese made for
the home-trade. The losses with the
firmer type were considerably reduced
in comparison with the others, but the
conditions to which the softer type of
cheese were subjected were not as
favorable (because of initial delays) ;,
and hence, the losses with these types
cannot be relied upon with such
definiteness. AS they were ex-
ceedingly moist cheese the total losses
from the press were undoubtedly
greater than here reported.
Influence of size of cheese-The
size of package eXerts a marked effect
on the rate of loss. At ordinary tenn
peratures, the smaller the cheese. the
more rapidly it dries out. This
difference in loss diminishes as the
temperature is lowered and in our ex-
periments at approximately 40 degrees
F. was practically Independent of the
size This condition, however, was
undoubtedly attributable to the rela-
tive humidity Of the curing room,
which at this low temperature was
100 degrees.
Influence of parafTin.-By coating
the cheese with melted paratfin the
losses at 60 degrees were reduced
more than one-haf. At the inter
mediate temperature the saving was
somewhat less and at the lowest tenn
perature the difference was prac-
tically negligible.
AS some loss occurs even in a
saturated atmosphere where evapora-
ton is presumed not to take place, it
implies that the shrinkage in weight
of cheese under these conditions is
not wholly due to desiccation. but is
affected by the production of volatile
products that are formed by processes
to the curing Of cheese.