CHEDDAR CHEESE RIPENING 269 



The gas-producing organisms enter because of unclean 

 conditions somewhere in the handling of the milk and 

 the making of the cheese. Some of the common sources 

 of gas organisms are: (a) unclean milkers; (6) dirty 

 cows ; (c) aerating the milk in impure air, especially air 

 from hog-pens where the whey is fed ; (d) allowing the 

 cows to wade in stagnant water or in mud or in filthy' 

 barnyards and then not thoroughly cleaning the cows 

 before milking; (e) exposing the milk to the dust from 

 hay and feed ; (/) dirty whey tanks ; (g) drawing milk 

 and whey in the same cans without afterward thoroughly 

 washing them; (h) unclean utensils in the factory; 

 (i) using gassy starter; (j) ripening cheese at high 

 temperatures. 



Some of these causes are within the control of the 

 cheese-maker after the making process is begun. Many 

 of them are avoided only by eternal vigilance. Among 

 the recommendations for meeting gassy curd are the 

 following : use only milk produced under clean sanitary 

 conditions ; use a clean commercial starter. 



If gas is suspected in the milk, a larger percentage 

 of commercial starter should be used. More acid must 

 be developed before the whey is removed. If the gas 

 shows while cheddaring, the curd should be piled and 

 repiled until the holes flatten out before milling. 



The curd should be kept warm during the piling or 

 cheddaring process. This may be accomplished by cover- 

 ing the vat and setting a pail or two of hot water in it. 

 After milling, the curd should be stirred and aired for a 

 considerable length of time before salting. This will 

 aerate the curd and allow it to cool. The cheese should 

 then be placed in a cool curing-room. (See handling of 

 gassy milk.) 



