COMMERCIAL CHEESE-RIPENING 383 



than by holding an excessive amount of moisture in 

 the green cheese and so ripening as to lose a larger 

 amount of moisture. Some cheese-makers expect that 

 they must lose lo pounds of weight per lOO pounds 

 of cheese in ripening, and they attempt to meet this 

 loss by retaining 40 per cent or more of moisture in 

 the cheese. Such a practice cannot lead to good re- 

 sults from any point of view. 



A fact that should not be lost sight of in this con- 

 nection is this: Cheese ripened at such low tempera- 

 tures as are favorable to diminishing the loss of 

 moisture can carry larger amounts of moisture from 

 the start without impairing the quality 



VALUE OF WATER IN CHEESE TO 



CONSUMERS 



In the first place, cheese that has not lost too much 

 of its moisture is more pleasing to the taste of the 

 average consumer. In the next place, the more com- 

 pletely a cheese dries out, the harder and thicker is 

 the rind and the greater the loss to the consumer. 

 Most people have become accustomed to such a waste, 

 but much of it is unnecessary. In a carefully ripened 

 cheese, the rind is comparatively moist and only a very 

 thin portion need be lost, and even this can be used 

 in cooking. 



REDUCTION OF RIPENING LOSSES IN 

 COMMERCIAL INVESTIGATIONS 



In 1902-3 an investigation, on a commercial scale, 

 was undertaken by the Dairy Division of the Bureau 

 of Animal Industry, United States Department of 



