When it comes to dairy products, Utah State University will always be known for its famous Aggie Ice Cream. What's less well-known, however, is that USU is also a leading researcher of ice cream's much older brother: cheese.
For about the last 20 years, USU has been intensively researching milk and milk products, focusing on cultures and the genomics of cultures in the last decade or so. From new types and flavors of cheese to more nutritious and less fattening cheese. USU is doing it all.
"We have some unique cheeses that you can only get here that come out of our research projects," said Carl Brotherson, associate director of the Western Dairy Center. "…We're expanding the scope of the research we're doing and the amount of the research we're doing."
Brotherson mentioned several of the projects USU has been undertaking, including the research and development of different bacteria in cheese that's been going on for years; the introduction of different nutritional components into the cheese, such as omega-3 fatty acids and soluble fibers; and the addition of probiotic bacteria to the cheese, something the school has been researching more recently.
Cheese is changing.
However, one thing that has not changed much over time is the way cheese is made at the USU dairy. From the cows to the dairy to the shelf, the process is basically the same as it has always been, and if you want to see just how things are done, a free public tour of the dairy is given daily.
As with all cheese, it starts with the milk, and USU's milk comes from the George B. Caine Dairy Farm in Wellsville.
With more than 100 milk-producing Holstein cows putting out eight gallons of milk per day, the Caine Dairy Farm ships thousands of gallons of milk to the USU dairy on campus every day.
After arriving at the campus dairy, the milk is then kept cold before being tested for protein and fat content. After filtration, the milk is run through a pasteurizer that heats it up to 160 degrees for 15 seconds.
The milk then goes into an enclosed cheese vat that holds 1,500 pounds. The milk is warmed before culture is added to it. The culture is a bacteria that converts the lactose in the milk to lactic acid and makes the pH of the milk drop.
Enzymes are also added, causing the milk to gel, or set up, like Jell-O. Once it gets to a certain firmness, it is cut into blocks called curd. A liquid, called whey, is then extracted from the curd and used to feed farm animals.
It's interesting to note that cheese has only a 10 percent yield. In other words, it takes 100 gallons of milk to produce 10 pounds of cheese.
Cheese, like wine, is often aged, and for some cheeses, like cheddar, it can be as long as a year before it's ready. According to Brotherson, though the cheese contains bacteria, mold growth is prohibited in the cheese by storing it in vacuum-sealed containers.
"Cheese ripening can be hastened or slowed," Brotherson said, "by different techniques such as warming or cooling the cheese during storage."
Cheese is produced at the campus dairy Monday through Thursday. The dairy produces both products for sale and for research, depending upon the need for each.
USU makes or is researching several different kinds of unique cheeses, including low-fat cheese that contains just 6 percent fat; a parmesan-style cheese that uses a different bacteria than traditional parmesan to develop the flavor; a malty-flavored cheese; and, of course, USU's special aged cheddar called "Bold Juniper", which has a non-typical cheddar flavor.
In terms of developing healthier cheese, Brotherson says USU is making strides in that direction as well. The key, however, is being able to add nutrition to cheese without harming the taste.
"We found out that if we add omega-3 fatty acids to cheese, it does not impart any (undesirable) flavor," Brotherson said. "… Now we're looking at more efficient ways to get omega-3s into the cheese. We also have a project looking at vitamin D and efficient ways of getting vitamin D into the cheese."
Brotherson went on to mention as many as 10 other additives USU researchers are experimenting with, including starches and soluble fibers such as inulin.
While Aggie Ice Cream is sold in grocery stores, the cheese produced for sale by the USU dairy can only be bought at the dairy. When asked if USU plans to market its cheese to the extent it does its ice cream, Brotherson said they planned to spread the word around the school.
"We haven't advertised our cheese too much," Brotherson said. "We will probably do a little more advertising, at least on campus, to get people to know that it's here. We keep a pretty good inventory of different cheeses that we make here out in the dairy bar (at the campus dairy)."