The Mysterious (Court) Case Of The Disappearing Cheese Holes
Date
6/11/2024 3:05:33 PM
(MENAFN- Swissinfo)
The Emmentaler Switzerland organisation wants to use hay flower powder to create larger holes in Emmental cheese. The federal Administrative Court must decide whether this is allowed in Switzerland.
This content was published on
June 11, 2024 - 11:00
3 minutes
Sibilla Bondolfi, SRF
Deutsch
de
Ein Emmentaler braucht Löcher – und sie müssen gross genug sein
Original
Read more: Ein Emmentaler braucht Löcher – und sie müssen gross genug sei
Italiano
it
L'Emmentaler ha bisogno dei buchi – e devono essere grandi
Read more: L'Emmentaler ha bisogno dei buchi – e devono essere grand
The holes in Emmental cheese are getting smaller and smaller. Years ago, Swiss researchers discovered that this was due to hygiene: In the past, hay dust got into the milk during manual milking. Bacteria formed and produced gases, which led to the characteristic holes. Since modern milking machines have been used, the holes have shrunk because the machines draw the milk so cleanly from the udder that fewer hay particles get into the milk. This is also a quality problem, because the smaller the holes in the cheese, the more likely it is that gaps and cracks will form.
This realisation is not entirely new. It had already been noticed earlier that Emmental cheese made from summer milk has smaller holes than that made from winter milk. The cows ate hay in winter and dust-free grass in summer.
Some cheese manufacturers take advantage of this and add hay dust to the milk. German or French Emmental, for example, has much larger holes – thanks to the addition of hay flower powder. In Switzerland, however, the use of such additives in Emmental is prohibited under the rules of the protected designation of origin.
The Emmentaler Switzerland organisation wants to change this. It has submitted an application to change the specifications for Emmental cheese. The Federal Office for Agriculture has rejected the application on the grounds that the use of additives would lead to the industrialisation of Emmental cheese.
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Two backgrounds, one passion in the heart of the Emmental
This content was published on
Oct 29, 2023
In a Swiss valley two young people from different worlds – Syria and Italy – share the same passion: cheesemaking.
Read more: Two backgrounds, one passion in the heart of the Emmenta
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