120 
110 
100 
90 
‘BO 
60 
30 
“120 
DAYS 

70 REPORT OF DEPARTMENT OF BACTERIOLOGY OF THE 
The highest number of germs per gram of cheese, 135 million, 
was found in the first sample when the cheese was 4 days old. At 
13 days the number had dropped to 10 millions. It was practi- 
cally at this figure at 47 days but at 61 days it had fallen to slightly 
less than 1 million and steadily decreased after that date. 
It will be noted that the true cheese flavor was barely appreciable 
at 23 days but was well developed at 61 days. The score likewise 
reached its maximum and the cheese was ripe when there was ap- 
proximately 1 million living germs per gram of cheese. The rapid 
deterioration of the cheese after reaching this point was probably 
due to the fact that about March 20 the temperature of the curing 
room rose to 65° F. (18° C.) and remained up for some days. 
Graphical representation.— The changes in the germ content and 
in the numerical score of this cheese are given in Graph I. The 
form of a graph depends upon the relative values chosen for the 
ordinate and abscissa. In this case it has seemed best to assign 


COMMERCIAL 
GERM CONTENT SCORE 
----- COMMERCIAL SCORE 
99 
98 
$F 
96 
95 
94 
~ 
= 93 
92 
93 
10 : = 9 
20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 
GRAPH I— GERM CONTENT AND COMMERCIAL QUALITY OF CHEESE 4.6 I. 
