Extension Shelf Life of Cheese: a Review

Abstract

Cheese is a versatile nutrient-dense dairy product and susceptible to physical, chemical and biochemical spoilage. As a nutrient dense dairy product, cheese is a good source of protein, minerals particularly calcium and phosphorus which are essential components in most highly consumed foods. Therefore, extension shelf life of this dairy food is very important. This review focuses mainly on techniques used in extension shelf life of cheese. According to literatures, the main methods for cheese shelf life extension are addition of preservative, modified atmosphere (MAP), high pressure, active coating, edible coating and combination of them. Several studies have done on almost all categories of cheeses including soft fresh cheese, soft ripened cheese, surface mould ripened cheese, semi-soft cheese, hard cheese and very hard cheeses. © 2015 Academic Journals Inc.