TASTE FOR CHEESE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 18 July 1938, Page 3

TASTE FOR CHEESE

NEW ZEALAND’S QUALITY IMPROVING. Information about the public taste for cheese which will interest dairy farmers in this country (says “The Times,” London), as well as in Canada, has been given by Mr Singleton, of the Dominion Department of Agriculture, at a dairymen’s meeting in Ontario. After referring to the high reputation of the best English and Scottish farm cheese, Mr Singleton said that it is generally conceded that Canadian Cheddar is of a higher quality than any other imported cheese. The quality of New Zealand cheese had improved during the past two or three years, said Mr Singleton, and the comparatively small quantity of South African cheese imported was considered by many to be of particularly superior quality. But practically all cheese from Australia and New Zealand is made from pasteurised milk. It is believed by many in the trade in the United Kingdom that cheese made from pasteurised milk will not develop a characteristic cheddar cheese flavour during maturing, and that cheese made from pasteurised milk is not safe to carry longer than about six months from the date of manufacture. Also, cheese made from pasteurised milk when cut and allowed to stand for a few hours develops a hard surface with a glazed appearance, and the surface opens up. These hard surfaces must be cut off, with resultant loss to the retailer. Mr Singleton pointed out that manufacturers of cheese in the United Kingdom and the Union of South Africa are now adopting pasteurisation of milk for cheesemaking, and it appears probable that in the near future factory cheese ■ in quantity made from unpasteurised milk will be available only from Canada.