Proteolysis in rennet-coagulated Spanish hard cheeses made from milk preserved by refrigeration and addition of carbon dioxide

On-farm refrigeration of milk reduces the growth rate of mesophilic bacteria so allowing longer storage time of raw milk before processing. However, refrigeration creates a selective pressure favouring the multiplication of psychrotrophic bacteria present as normal contaminants in raw milk. Psychrotrophs are killed by most of the currently employed pasteurization and sterilization treatments of milk but they can produce extracellular heat-stable proteinases and lipases, which are capable of degrading various milk components, affecting the storage-life of heat-processed milk and the quality of dairy products (Champagne et al. 1994; Shah, 1994).