WO1999007233A1

WO1999007233A1 - Process for the uniform coloration of cheese

Info

Publication number: WO1999007233A1
Application number: PCT/US1998/016309
Authority: WO
Inventors: Larry Talbott
Original assignee: Rhodia Inc
Current assignee: Solvay USA Inc
Priority date: 1997-08-08
Filing date: 1998-08-04
Publication date: 1999-02-18
Anticipated expiration: 2000-02-08
Also published as: AU8770698A

Abstract

An improved method for the uniform coloration of cheese comprises associating a food grade colorant with a carrier which is then dispersed within the milk source that is processed into the final cheese product.

Description

PROCESS FOR THE UNIFORM COLORATION OF CHEESE

Background of the Invention

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to the coloration of foods and in particular dairy foods such as cheese. Specifically, the invention relates to the incorporation of a food-approved natural colorant or dye by plating it onto a solid substrate component ordinarily present in cheese and uniformly incorporating the colored component throughout.

2. Technology Description

Cheese production and manufacture is obviously centuries old and although there have been many variations and improvements developed in the process over the years, the basic method of production remains unchanged. Milk is fermented with a starter bacterial culture. Casein, as well as other milk proteins, coagulates and precipitates from solution over time. This enzyme action such as rennet (chymosin) further hydrolyzes the proteins, changing the milk from a liquid to a solid-in-a- liquid two-phase system. The solids fraction is known as the curds and after heating for further solidification, the curds are separated from the liquid (or whey) and processed in order to arrive at the final cheese product.

As a means to enhance the visual and aesthetic appeal of certain types of cheese, such as Cheddar, government-approved food colors or dyes are added during the process in order to give the cheese the richer, mellowed appearance of darker yellow and orange hues. In particular, one colorant which is known in the art and exhibits superior rich tones and hues when incorporated in cheese to impart or suggest a robust, flavorful cheese is annatto. Annatto is a vegetable-derived colorant chemically known as ethyl bixin whose formula and composition is a fatty pigment which is a carotenoid derived from the buds of Bixa orellana.

During standard cheese manufacturing protocols, once the curd is fully precipitated from the aqueous fraction or whey, it is most desirable to separate the two completely. Under modern methodologies, whereas the curd is processed into the final cheese product, a purified aqueous whey can still be useful in other applications. Since colorants such as annatto are water-soluble, any attempt to incorporate them directly into the cheese by mixing them either into milk or into the curds and whey mixture as is presently done in commercial processes will yield less than optimal results since the colorant will remain solubilized and a portion will separate out and will be lost from the solid curds/cheese fraction into the aqueous whey. This has the twofold effect of delivering less annatto to the curds and potentially adding color impurities into the whey. The whey by-product resulting from cheese manufacture can be used in other food applications such as puddings, ice cream and processed cheese. In practice additional chemical processing steps such as the addition of oxidizers to bleach the by-product in order to render it more usable are typically required.

In the past, cheese color has been incorporated into natural cheeses by incorporating the annatto, in aqueous solution form, into milk which is then processed as defined above. It is believed that the annatto generally associates with the casein protein and using this as the vehicle is incorporated throughout the curds fraction and eventually throughout the final cheese product. For the production of processed cheese, color is provided through the use of either oil soluble colorants such as oil soluble annatto, which is added to the mixture used to form the processed cheese, or, in part, by using a pre-colored starting natural cheese (produced in accordance with the above conventional processing). It would be advantageous then to devise a method in which the water- soluble food colorant such as annatto is incorporated directly onto or within the solid curd fraction. United States Patent No. 4,699,664 to Hettiarachchy et al. discloses a method for the loading and stabilization of natural pigment complexes including ethyl bixin, i.e., annatto. The colorants allegedly have improved stability against oxygen, heat, light and moisture degradation and are formed into a complex comprising the pigment, a hydrocolloid such as pectin, gums and modified celluloses and a polyvalent metal cation connecting the two. The polyvalent cation is selected from the group consisting of the soluble salts of calcium, magnesium, zinc, copper and the like. The stabilized colorants can be incorporated into cheeses, beverages, processed foods and the like.

United States Patent No. 5,053,240 to Todd discloses compositions comprising norbixin complexed with a substrate consisting of a water- soluble or water-dispersible protein or polysaccharide. Suitable proteins include milk protein, sodium caseinate, whey, gelatin and the like. Suitable polysaccharides include cyclodextrin, maltodextrin and food starch among others. The complexes are useful in coloring food products and beverages.

United States Patent No. 4,380,553 to Schmidt teaches a method for imparting a reddish color to seasoning salts comprising the formation of a slurry of annatto in an alkaline solution, precipitating the annatto with acid and plating precipitated colorant onto the salt crystals. The pigmented salt is allegedly useful in the flavoring of snack foods.

Despite the above teachings, there still exists a need in the art for an improved method for distributing color to cheese such that both the cheese has improved color and the whey by-product has minimal color impurities.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with one embodiment, the present invention comprises a process for providing color to cheese during its manufacture comprising the steps of:

(a) forming a coloring composition comprising a colorant associated with a carrier;

(b) adding the coloring composition to the milk used to form cheese;

(c) processing the milk to separate it into a curd portion and a whey portion;

(d) providing color to the curd portion as a result of the carrier having an affinity to the curd portion as compared to the whey portion;

(e) separating the curd portion from the whey portion; and

(f) converting the curd portion into cheese.

In preferred embodiments, the colorant comprises annatto and the carrier comprises casein (or casein salts or acid precipitated casein).

It is an object of the present invention then, to provide an improved method for the partition of a colorant in the preparation and manufacture of cheese. In particular, it is an object of the invention to associate a food approved colorant such as annatto uniformly with a protein substrate ordinarily present in cheese that can be thereafter incorporated within a milk source which is then further processed to provide cheese having improved coloration.

It is yet another object of the present invention to produce a whey byproduct from cheese manufacture having minimal or reduced color impurities and which can be used in the production of formulated food products.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a method for adding a colorant during cheese manufacture in a dry diluent form during the manufacturing process and thereby not requiring the addition of unnecessary water.

These, and other objects, will readily be apparent to those skilled in the art as reference is made to the detailed description of the preferred embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In describing the preferred embodiment, certain terminology will be utilized for the sake of clarity. Such terminology is intended to encompass the recited embodiment, as well as all technical equivalents which operate in a similar manner for a similar purpose to achieve a similar result.

The present invention is directed to a novel method for the coloration of cheese and other dairy products in which a food grade, preferably water- soluble colorant or dye is plated or otherwise associated with a solid protein substrate that is a natural component of the product itself. The colorant such as annatto is associated with the protein support which has an affinity towards the curd and not the whey using means known in the art. For example, a fluidized bed apparatus or co-drying the colorant with the support may be selected. The colorant composition (i.e., the colorant and support) is thereafter added to the milk used during the cheese manufacturing process. Because the support has an affinity towards the curd, during cheese manufacture the support, and associated colorant is distributed to the curd portion of the cheese in a nearly quantitative amount. By using the affinity support, little, if any of the water-soluble colorant is distributed in the whey fraction which can be then used in other applications with less defects. Accordingly, a twofold benefit of obtaining a cheese product having improved color retention or directed partitioning to the curd and recovering as a by-product of the process whey having little to no color impurities is achieved.

Milk used in the fermentation and manufacture of cheese is largely comprised of water (87%), milk proteins such as casein (3.0%), fat and fatty acids (3.8%), lactose (5.0%), minor amounts of serum proteins and inorganic minerals such as calcium, potassium, phosphorous, ion, magnesium, etc. Milk is actually an emulsion of all these elements which exhibit several levels of dispersion. In accordance with the present invention, either whole milk, reduced fat milk or nonfat milk may be used in the cheese manufacture.

Although commonly regarded as the major protein component of milk, casein is actually a colloidal aggregate of several different and identifiable proteins complexed together with phosphorous and calcium. It is insoluble in water, and precipitates upon action of a coagulant.

In the preparation of cheese in general, a starter bacterial culture and coagulant is added to milk to produce a solid and liquid phase which are easily separable. The solid phase is primarily comprised of casein and fat. The liquid phase is comprised of water, whey protein, lactose and minerals. The two phases are then separated and the solid, predominantly casein rich curds are further processed as cheese while the liquid phase or whey may be used in other applications.

It is important to solidify and gel as much of the casein-rich curds as possible to improve conversion of the milk to the final cheese product. In addition, it is desirable to produce as a by-product a less colored or more purified liquid whey fraction which can thereafter be used in other applications. To provide color to the cheese using standard cheese making procedures, in accordance with the present invention, the colorant, preferably water soluble annatto is first associated with a solid protein support so that it is firmly incorporated therein and then is subsequently incorporated into milk. The milk is then processed to form the final cheese product as is known in the art.

In order to utilize the preferred affinity plating method of the present invention, it is necessary to associate the colorant with a carrier material.

The carrier material selected is a typically a protein material, preferably a solid, which is otherwise already present in the cheese making process and particularly characterized by being capable of preferentially associating with the curd portion of the cheese once separation of the milk into the curd portion and the whey portion occurs. The preferred carrier material comprises casein (including salts such as calcium, sodium or potassium caseinate or acid precipitated casein). Other solid protein support systems may be utilized for plating the color and these include whey protein, egg white protein and non-fat milk solids, although casein is most preferred.

Colorants which may be selected for use include, but are not limited to annatto, paprika, tomato powder extract, carrot oil, beta-carotene, turmeric, corn gluten oil, palm oil, saffron, other natural dyes or colorants, artificial dyes or colorants and the like. The preferred colorant is water soluble annatto.

The colorant is associated with the solid carrier material using means known in the art, for example by utilizing a fluidized bed reactor apparatus. When using a fluidized bed apparatus, the solid carrier particles are suspended in an air or other inert gas flow in the reactor chamber during which time a liquid solution of the colorant is injected into the gas flow as well. The fluidized carrier comes into intimate contact with the surrounding colorant solution which immediately bonds thereto. Once dried, the particles are collected, and incorporated into milk which is then processed as cheese as follows.

Other methods for associating the colorant with the carrier include, but are not limited to, spray coating, pan coating, solvent film coating, co- drying of the colorant with the carrier such as freeze drying and co-spray drying, and the like.

In practice, when using a water soluble annatto solution to plate the annatto onto the carrier material, the solution used is typically between about 1 to 20 weight percent by weight solid annatto, and 99 to 80 weight percent water, the total amount being 100 weight percent. In preferred embodiments, the solution comprises a 3.2 weight percent aqueous solution of annatto.

The amount of color to be plated onto the carrier and incorporated into the cheese will vary and depends upon the type of cheese desired as the final product. In practice, this amounts to adding between about 0.01 to about 5.0 ounces of colorant solution per pound of carrier. In a preferred embodiment where the colorant solution comprises a 3.2 weight percent solution of annatto, between about 0.125 to about 5.0 ounces of the annatto solution is added to one pound of carrier. For example, if the final cheese product is a cheddar variety, a higher concentration of annatto solution is added to the carrier particles during the fluidized bed deposition (or other association) process. If the final cheese product is a lighter colored cheddar or mozzarella type, a much lower concentration of annatto solution is added if at all to the carrier particles.

In preparing the cheese as is known in the art, for example, cheddar cheese, once pasteurized milk is heated in a cheese vat to a temperature of from about 85 to 95°F and preferably from about 88 F to 95 °F. Bacterial cheese cultures are added to the vat when the system reaches the desired temperature. The colorant/carrier particles are then added along with any other flavor or texturing agents. In practice, the colorant/carrier particles are added either in dry form or in an aqueous or milk slurry so that the amount of colorant/carrier particles are added (by dry weight) in an amount of between about 0.01 to about 20.0 parts per 1000 parts of milk to be processed, and more preferably about 1.0 part per 1000 parts of milk. As is considered standard for cheese making, calcium solutions are added in order to aid in the coagulation and solidification of the product by rennin.

In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the colorant may be added to the milk in a dry form (i.e., the protein carrier particles act as a diluent for the colorant). This has the benefit of reducing the amount of water added during the cheese manufacture, thereby reducing the whey volume to be ultimately condensed and dried. This results in reduced energy, recycling and disposal costs. These cost reductions are obtained even if the improvement in color plating efficiency is minimal.

Once the coagulants are added, stirring of the vat is stopped and the cheese is permitted to coagulate quiescently. The coagulated curd is cut into small pieces and cooked while stirring for a period of from about 30 minutes to an hour. Cutting and cooking of the curd facilitates expulsion of the whey therefrom. Because of the affinity of the carrier to the curd portion of the curd/whey system, enhanced color is provided to the curd and is not transferred to the whey.

The whey by-product, which should contain reduced color impurities, can then be recovered by means known in the art such as separation, condensing, drying, etc.

The advantage of incorporating annatto color into cheese in this manner is that it allows for the production of a colored cheese while partitioning the color in a uniform manner towards the curd and reducing residual color in the whey. Secondly, it allows for the preparation of a highly purified whey by-product which is then useful in a variety of other applications. Under present commercial manufacturing procedures, the whey by-product can contain amounts of colorant which must be removed if a pure by-product is desired. Chemical treatment, such as the addition of oxidizing agents is typically used. By using the color partitioning method of the present invention, this chemical treatment step may be omitted, resulting in significant cost savings to the cheese manufacturer. In addition, whey by-product is commonly used in the manufacture of ice cream, puddings, and processed cheese. The presence of color impurities in the whey used in such products can result in an inferior, potentially non-salable product. The whey by-product produced by the present invention has reduced color impurities and can therefore be readily used in such products "as is". In addition, if the colorant/carrier is directly added to the milk in dry form, processing costs otherwise associated with the addition of water during the process may be reduced.

COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 1

To provide color to milk used to prepare cheese, liquid annatto (norbixin) is added directly to the cheese milk. 0.0316 grams (the equivalent of 1.0 ounce/1 ,000 lb.) of single strength annatto is added directly to the cheese milk.

EXAMPLE 2

15.00 parts of calcium caseinate and 00.9384 parts of cheese color single strength annatto are slurried in 84.06 parts of water. 3.33 grams of this colored slurry, which is equivalent to 0.0324 grams of single strength cheese color is added directly to the cheese milk.

QUANTITATIVE TESTING The cheese milk of Comparative Example 1 and Example 2 is color evaluated by reflectance using a Hunter Colorimeter. The variables "L", "a", "b" and "Hue Angle" are reflectance values used to determine the intensity of color in the sample. For the "L" variable, a value of white is 100 while a value of black is 0. The "a" variable measures color on a red- green scale. A higher (absolute) negative number indicates that the sample contains lesser amount of red color. The "b" variable measures color on a yellow-blue scale. The hue angle measures color using the following scale: 0° - Red, 90° - Yellow, 180° - Green and 270° - Blue.

Experimental Milk Variables L a b Hue Angle

Comparative Example 1 84.88 1.24 15.86 85.53

Example 2 84.69 1.14 15.40 85.77

This data indicates that the cheese milk prepared in advance of the cheesemaking process is nearly identical in color for both Comparative Example 1 and Example 2.

To determine the differences in color distribution resulting from the use of the above cheese milk samples, the milk is tempered to 31 - 32°C. The milk coagulant (cloned rennet) is added at the rate of 1.15 oz./1 ,000 lb. of milk. The mixture is allowed to set quiescently for approximately 45 minutes until an appropriate firmed gel is achieved. The gel is cut, healed for 15 minutes and ramped in temperature to 38°C within 30 minutes. Once this is accomplished the curd and whey portions are separated for reflectance evaluation. The table below lists the "L", "a", "b" and "Hue

Angle" variables as obtained from a Hunter Colorimeter by evaluation of the whey portion. It is assumed that if the whey portion has a greater degree of red color then less red color has been transferred to the curd. Accordingly, the sample with the least amount of red color in the whey portion is considered to be the most superior from the perspective of color partitioning. Experimental Whev Variables L a b Hue Angle

Comparative Example 1 57.58 -3.38 9.68 109.25

Example 2 54.29 -3.72 7.59 116.11

The reflectance from the whey produced from the above cheese vats show an "a" value being more red for the Comparative Example 1 sample as compared to the lesser red quantified for the Example 2 sample. The whey which shows the most red numerical hue angle is the Comparative Example 1 sample. The above data therefore suggests that improved color partitioning is obtained using the Example 2 cheese colorant as compared to the Example 1 colorant as more red color would thereby be directed to the curd.

Having described the invention in detail and by reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent that modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A process for providing color to cheese during its manufacture comprising the steps of:

(b) adding the coloring composition to the milk used to form cheese;

(c) processing the milk to separate it into a curd portion and a whey portion;

(e) separating the curd portion from the whey portion; and

(f) converting the curd portion into cheese.

2. The process according to claim 1 wherein said colorant is selected from the group consisting of annatto, paprika, tomato powder extract, carrot oil, beta-carotene, turmeric, corn gluten oil, palm oil, artificial dyes or colorants, saffron and mixtures thereof.

3. The process according to claim 1 wherein said carrier is a solid and is selected from the group consisting of casein, casein salts, acid precipitated casein, egg white protein, whey protein and non-fat milk solids.

4. The process according to claim 1 wherein said colorant comprises annatto and said carrier comprises casein, acid precipitated casein or caseinate salts.

5. The process according to claim 1 wherein said colorant is associated with said carrier by means of fluidized bed drying, spray coating, pan coating, co-drying of the colorant with the carrier or solvent film coating.

6. The process according to claim 5 wherein said colorant is associated with said carrier by means of fluidized bed drying.

7. Natural cheese having improved color produced by the process comprising the steps of:

(b) adding the coloring composition to the milk used to form cheese;

(c) processing the milk to separate it into a curd portion and a whey portion;

(e) separating the curd portion from the whey portion; and

(f) converting the curd portion into cheese.

8. The cheese according to claim 7 wherein said colorant comprises annatto and said carrier comprises casein, acid precipitated casein or caseinate salts.

9. A process for producing whey having minimal color impurities comprising the steps of:

(b) adding the coloring composition to milk used to form cheese;

(c) processing the milk to separate it into a curd portion and a whey portion;

(d) providing color to the curd portion as a result of the carrier having an affinity to the curd portion as compared to the whey portion; and

(e) separating and recovering the whey portion from the curd portion.

10. The process according to claim 9 wherein said colorant comprises annatto and said carrier comprises casein, acid precipitated casein or caseinate salts.

11. A whey product having reduced color impurities produced during a cheese making process comprising the steps of:

(b) adding the coloring composition to milk used to form cheese;

(c) processing the milk to separate it into a curd portion and a whey portion;

(d) providing color to the curd portion as a result of the carrier having an affinity to the curd portion as compared to the whey portion; and (e) separating and recovering the whey portion from the curd portion.

12. The product according to claim 11 wherein said colorant comprises annatto and said carrier comprises casein, acid precipitated casein or caseinate salts.

13. An ice cream, pudding, or processed cheese product including a whey product having reduced color impurities produced during a cheese making process comprising the steps of:

(b) adding the coloring composition to milk used to form cheese;

(c) processing the milk to separate it into a curd portion and a whey portion;

(e) separating and recovering the whey portion from the curd portion.

14. The product according to claim 13 wherein said colorant comprises annatto and said carrier comprises casein, acid precipitated casein or caseinate salts.

15. A process for providing color during cheese manufacture comprising the steps of producing a coloring composition by associating a colorant with a carrier selected from the group consisting of casein, casein salts, acid precipitated casein, egg white protein, whey protein and non-fat milk solids and adding said coloring composition in a dry form to the milk source used to produce the cheese.

16. The process according to claim 15 wherein said colorant comprises annatto and said carrier comprises casein, casein salts or acid precipitated casein.