Effect of compositional and environmental factors on the growth of indigenous non-starter lactic acid bacteria in Cheddar cheese

Abstract

Summary - The effects of salt and moi sture content, ripening temperature and starter strain, independently, on the growth of indigenous non-starter lactic acid bacteria (NSLAB) in Cheddar cheeses were studied. Salt-in-moisture (SIM) :,;5.9% had no effect on the growth of NSLAB; 6.1 % SIM reduced their growth rate but had no effect on their number at 6 months. Cheeses with a moi sture content > 40.3% had higher numbers of NSLAB than cheeses with a lower moisture content during the initial stages of ripening; the difference appeared to be related to the length of the lag phase rather than to the rate of growth of these bacteria. Numbers of NSLAB were quite low in cheeses ripened at 4 C even after 6 months and increased with ripening temperature at ail stages of ripening. NSLAB grew faster initially in cheeses made with Lactococcus lactis ssp lactis ML3 or 303 as starter than in those made with Le lactis ssp cremoris AM 1 or AM2 but reached similar numbers after 6 months.