The term “soft cheese” covers fresh cheese types which are mainly acid coagulated (“acid cheese”) by use of lactic acid bacteria.
High-fat soft cheeses are sold under names like Cream Cheese, Double Cream Cheese, Mascarpone, Smetana, etc.
In contrast to traditional “rennet or curd cheeses” whose processing and ripening may be disturbed by whey proteins, migration of whey proteins into soft cheese is advantageous as it may improve the water binding capacity and firmness of the cheese. Furthermore, the syneresis will be reduced and the yield will be increased.
In order to achieve a sufficient degree of denaturation of the whey protein, the optimum pre-treatment is therefore high-temperature pasteurisation (ie. pasteurisation at min. 87°C for 15 sec.). High-temperature pasteurisation can be omitted if ultrafiltration technology is applied. Fat standardisation must be performed downstream of the concentration in order to reduce fat losses through the whey.
The manufacturing process itself is relatively simple; high-fat soft cheese products are produced in many different varieties around the world, but the main processing steps are identical. Pasteurised skimmed milk and cream are concentrated to the desired total solid content in eg. a separator and/or in an ultrafiltration plant. Subsequent to concentration the skimmed milk and cream are blended to the required content and this blend is fermented. Finally, the blend is heated and ingredients, eg. herbs or jam, can be added prior to filling.
The below processing parameters are general guidelines and should only be considered as such.
Processing Sequence