Combine fermenters and salt to transform milk into cheese

Cheese demonstrates the different possibilities that milk can take. There are hundreds of recognized cheese recipes worldwide, but the main ingredients remain the same: milk, fermenters, salt, and time. Cheese manufacturers combine these elements to craft unique flavors, aromas, and textures. Advanced cheesemaking equipment provides better control over these elements to create ever more diverse cheeseboards.

Cut the curdles to increase their surface area

Cutting technology is critical to cheese production. After solidifying, the milk is cut into smaller curdles to let out more whey. Cheesemaking equipment slices the curds down in different directions, increasing their surface area with each cut.

The smaller the pieces, the more whey they lose, so harder cheeses are cut down more finely. Softer cheeses retain more moisture, and the coagulant is kept in larger pieces.

Select cheesemaking equipment for salting according to the product consistency

Many cheese recipes include herbs and spices, such as dried mint in halloumi or habañero chilies in pepper jack. All cheese formulas, however, contain salt.

Salt is not a taste-enhancer as much as a preserving agent, halting fermentation. In hard cheeses, salt is sprayed onto the mix during milling. The curdles are further reduced before being compacted into ripening molds.

In the case of fresh cheeses, salting is done in a brine system. The curdles are placed in the saline solution containing calcium chloride, non-iodized salts, and vinegar to soak in the minerals. The processing equipment required to produce cheese usually remains the same, even if the type of cheese you want to make will be different. Typically the equipment is stainless steel and consists of a cheese press, cheese vats, tanks, homogenizers, heat exchangers and mixers.