Relationships between Abondance cheese texture, its composition and that of milk produced by cows grazing different types of pastures

Abstract

-The relationships between the texture and composition of Abondance cheese (HauteSavoie, France) and the milk used for its production, were investigated under real conditions of cheese production. Ten different types of pasture, exploited by three producers, were involved. Milk characteristics, linked to the type of pasture, affected cheese texture, as did the cheesemaking process. Cheeses from milk produced on mountain pastures (M, n = 5, 1 500-1 850 m) exhibited different rheological properties from those produced with milk from valley pastures (V, n = 5, 850-1 100 m): they were less elastic and less deformable. Rheological characteristics were mainly linked to the proportion of 18 atoms of carbon unsaturated fatty acids, which was higher in M milks, and to the proteolysis of cheese. Plasmin activity, which was higher in M milks, could enhance primary proteolysis in the corresponding cheeses. Differences in sensory texture, which were greater between M cheeses than between V cheeses, were attributed to variations in moisture and salt content. These differences could be linked to the cheesemaking process and also to the characteristics of milks, such as their pHvalue and acidifying ability.texture / rheology / cheese composition / milk composition / pasture Résumé -Relations entre la texture de fromages d'Abondance, leur composition, et celle des laits produits par des vaches pâturant différents types de pelouse. Les relations entre la texture du fromage d'Abondance (Haute-Savoie, France), sa composition et celle du lait utilisé pour sa fabrication ont été étudiées dans des conditions réelles de production du fromage. Dix pâturages différents, exploités par 3 producteurs, ont été étudiés. Les caractéristiques du lait, liées aux types de pâturage ont joué un rôle dans l'élaboration de la texture, de même que les paramètres de fabrication. Les fromages fabriqués à partir de laits produits sur des pâturages de montagne (M, n = 5, 1 500-1 850 m) étaient moins élastiques et moins déformables que les fromages issus de laits produits sur des pâtura-ges de vallée (V, n = 5, 850-1 100 m). Ces caractéristiques rhéologiques étaient liées principalement à la teneur en acides gras insaturés à 18 atomes de carbone des laits, plus élevée dans les laits M, et à la protéolyse des fromages. La plasmine, plus active dans les laits M, contribuerait à une protéolyse primaire plus importante dans ces fromages. Les fromages M présentaient une plus grande diversité de texture que les fromages V, en partie associée à des différences de teneurs en eau et en sel. Ces diffé-rences seraient liées à la technologie mise en oeuvre et à certaines caractéristiques du lait comme son pH et son aptitude à s'acidifier.texture / rhéologie / composition des fromages / composition des laits / pâturage

Relationships between flavour and chemical composition of Abondance cheese derived from different types of pastures

“…L -1 at pH 4.4 normalised to total nitrogen (pH 4.4-SN/TN), nitrogen soluble in phosphotungstic acid normalised to total nitrogen (PTA-SN/TN), and casein ratios α S1 -I/α S1+S2 , αS deg /α S1+S2 , γ/β, have been described by Bugaud et al [16].…”

“…The herds and milks have been described by Bugaud et al [15]. The manufacture and ripening of Abondance cheese have been described by Bugaud et al [16]. The experimental design is presented in Figure 1.…”

“…This study is part of a project aimed at understanding the influence of pastures on the sensory properties of cheese, of which the first results have already been presented [14][15][16]. The study was undertaken under real conditions of Abondance cheese production (HauteSavoie, France), in order to benefit from a wide variety of pasture types and be able to monitor the entire production chain from grass to cheese via milk.…”

Potentiality of front-face fluorescence spectroscopy to determine the geographic origin of milks from the Haute-Loire department (France)

“…Animal feeding is one of the elements which is often considered as important by milk producers and food processors [5][6][7]. Grass of natural highland pastures presents a highly diversified botanical composition as well as abundant secondary metabolites which may influence milk quality [6,7].…”

“…Grass of natural highland pastures presents a highly diversified botanical composition as well as abundant secondary metabolites which may influence milk quality [6,7]. While the gramineae and legumineae families dominate artificial pastures of lowlands, permanent pastures of highlands contain significant proportions of plants belonging to many other botanical families such as rosaceae and plantaginaceae [6,7,21].…”