Phenotypic analysis of cheese yields and nutrient recoveries in the curd of buffalo milk, as measured with an individual model cheese-manufacturing process

Traits associated with cheese yield and milk nutrient recovery in curd are used to describe the efficiency of the cheese-making process. This is fundamental for all dairy species, including the Italian Mediterranean buffalo, which is largely used for milk production aimed at the dairy industry. To assess cheese-making traits among buffalo, a model cheese-manufacturing process was tested; it was capable of processing 24 samples per run, using 0.5-L samples of milk from individual buffalo. In total, 180 buffalo reared in 7 herds located in Northeast Italy were sampled once. Briefly, each sample was weighed and heated (35°C for 30min), inoculated with starter culture (90min), and mixed with rennet (51.2 international milk-clotting units/L of milk). After 10min of gelation, the curd was cut; 5min after the cut, the curd was separated from the whey, and the curd was subjected to draining (for 30min) and pressing (18h). The curd and whey were weighed, analyzed for pH and the total solid, fat, lactose, and protein contents, and subjected to estimation of the energy content. Three measures of cheese yield (%CY), %CYCURD, %CYSOLIDS, and %CYWATER, were computed as the ratios between the weight of the curd, the curd dry matter, and the water retained in the curd, respectively, and the weight of the milk processed. These traits were multiplied by the daily milk yield to define the 3 corresponding measures of daily cheese yield (dCY, kg/d). The milk component recoveries (REC) in the curd, RECFAT, RECPROTEIN, and RECSOLIDS, represented the ratios between the weights of the fat, protein, and total solids in the curd, respectively, and the corresponding components in the milk. Finally, energy recovery (RECENERGY) was estimated. The values for %CYCURD, %CYSOLIDS, %CYWATER, RECPROTEIN, RECFAT, RECSOLIDS, and RECENERGYaveraged 25.6, 12.7, 12.9, 80.4, 95.1, 66.7, and 79.3%, respectively, indicating that buffalo milk has a higher aptitude to cheese-making than bovine milk. The effect of days in milk was the most important source of variation for %CY, RECPROTEIN, and the overall recoveries (which showed higher values toward the end of lactation), whereas parity did not appear to influence any of the investigated traits. The cheese-making procedure tested allowed us to assess the variability of and relationships among different cheese yield traits, recovery traits, daily milk production traits, and milk components at the individual level.