Original Scientific Article
Microbiological quality of soft, semi-hard and hard cheeses during the shelf-life
Josip Vrdoljak ,
Vesna Dobranić ,
Ivana Filipović ,
Nevijo Zdolec *

Mac Vet Rev 2016; 39 (1): 59 - 64

10.1515/macvetrev-2015-0068

Received: 01 July 2015

Received in revised form: 03 November 2015

Accepted: 19 November 2015

Available Online First: 04 December 2015

Published on: 15 March 2016

Correspondence: Nevijo Zdolec, nzdolec@vef.hr
PDF HTML

Abstract

Cheeses as ready-to-eat food should be considered as a potential source of foodborne pathogens, primarily Listeria monocytogenes. The aim of present study was to determine the microbiological quality of soft, semi-hard and hard cheeses during the shelf-life, with particular reference to L. monocytogenes. Five types of cheeses were sampled at different timepoints during the cold storage and analyzed for presence of Salmonella and L. monocytogenes, as well as lactic acid bacteria, Escherichia coli, coagulase-positive staphylococci, yeasts, molds, sulfite-reducing clostridia and L. monocytogenes counts. Water activity, pH and NaCl content were monitored in order to evaluate the possibility of L. monocytogenes growth. Challenge test for L. monocytogenes was performed in soft whey cheese, to determine the growth potential of pathogen during the shelf-life of product. All analyzed cheeses were compliant with microbiological criteria during the shelf-life. In soft cheeses, lactic acid bacteria increased in the course of the shelf-life period (1.2-2.6 log increase), while in semi-hard and hard cheeses it decreased (1.6 and 5.2 log decrease, respectively). Soft cheeses support the growth of L. monocytogenes according to determined pH values (5.8-6.5), water activity (0.99-0.94), and NaCl content (0.3-1.2%). Challenge test showed that L. monocytogenes growth potential in selected soft cheese was 0.43 log10 cfu/g during 8 days at 4°C. Water activity in semi-hard and hard cheeses was a limiting factor for Listeria growth during the shelf-life. Soft, semi-hard and hard cheeses were microbiologically stable during their defined shelf-life. Good manufacturing and hygienic practices must be strictly followed in the production of soft cheeses as Listeria-supporting food and be focused on preventing (re)contamination.

Keywords: cheese, shelf-life, L. monocytogenes

References

1. Antunac, N., Hudik, S., Mikulec, N., Maletić, M., Horvat, I., Radeljević, B., Havranek, J. (2011). Proizvodnja i kemijski sastav Istarske i Paške skute. Mljekarstvo 61, 326-335. (in Croatian)

2. Bishop, J.R., Smukowski, M. (2006). Storage temperatures necessary to maintain cheese safety. Food Protect. Trends 26, 714-724.

3. Coelho, M.C., Silva, C.C.G., Ribeiro, S.C., Dapkevicius, M.L.N.E., Rosa, H.J.D. (2014). Control of Listeria monocytogenes in fresh cheese using protective lactic acid bacteria. Int. J. Food Microbiol. 191, 53-59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2014.08.029 PMid:25222327

4. Commision regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 on microbiological criteria for foods. Official Journal of the European Union L338/1-338/26.

5. Donelly, C.W. (2004). Growth and survival of microbial pathogens in cheese. In: Fox, P.F., McSweeney, P.L.H., Cogan, T.M., Guinee, T. P. (Eds.), Cheese - Chemistry, Physics and Microbiology, Third Edition – Vol. 1: general aspects. (pp 541-559), London: Elsevier Ltd. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s1874-558x(04)80081-2

6. EFSA (2013). Analysis of the baseline survey on the prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes in certain ready-to-eat foods in the EU, 2010-2011 Part A: Listeria monocytogenes prevalence estimates. EFSA Jounal 11, 3241.

7. Kozačinski, L., Hadžiosmanović, M. (2001). The occurrence of Listeria monocytogenes in home-made dairy products. Tierartz Umsch. 56, 590-594.

8. Ledenbach, L.H., Marshall, L.T. (2009). Microbiological spoilage of dairy products. In: Sperber, W.H., Doyle, M.P. (Eds.), Compendium of the microbiological spoilage of foods and beverages (pp 41-67), Springer Science. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0826-1_2

9. Leong, W.M., Geier, R., Engstrom, S., Ingham, S., Ingham, B., Smukowski, M. (2014). Growth of Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Staphylococcus aureus on cheese during extended storage at 25 °C. J. Food Protect. 77, 1275-1288. http://dx.doi.org/10.4315/0362-028X.JFP-14-047 PMid:25198588

10. Litopoulou-Tzanetaki, E., Tzanetakis, N. (2011). Microbiological characteristics of Greek traditional cheese. Small Rum Res. 101, 17-32.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.smallrumres.2011.09.022

11. Marijan, A., Džaja, P., Bogdanović, T., Škoko, I., Cvetnić, Ž., Dobranić, V., Zdolec, N., Šatrović, E., Sverin, K. (2014). Influence of ripening time on the amount of certain biogenic amines in rind and core of cow milk Livno cheese. Mljekarstvo 64, 159-169. http://dx.doi.org/10.15567/mljekarstvo.2014.0303

12. Markov, K., Frece, J., Čvek, D., Delaš, F. (2009). Listeria monocytogenes and other contaminants in fresh cheese and cream from Zagreb city area domestic production. Mljekarstvo 59, 225-231.

13. Matić, A., Kalit, S., Salajpal, K., Ivanković, S., Sarić, Z. (2014). Consumers’ preferences and composition of Livanjski cheese in relation to its sensory characteristics. Mljekarstvo 64, 170-177. http://dx.doi.org/10.15567/mljekarstvo.2014.0304

14. Melo, J., Andrew, P.W., Faleiro, M.L. (2015). Listeria monocytogenes in cheese and the dairy environment remains a food safety challenge: The role of stress responses. Food Res. Int. 67, 75-90. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodres.2014.10.031

15. Merćep, A., Kirin, S., Zdolec, N., Cvrtila Fleck, Ž., Filipović, I., Njari, B., Mitak, M., Kozačinski, L. (2010). Quality of Trappist cheese from Croatian dairy plant. Mljekarstvo 60, 288-298.

16. Papaioannou, G., Chouliara, I., Karatapanis, A.E., Kontominas, M.G., Savvaidis, I.N. (2007). Shelf-life of a Greek whey cheese under modified atmosphere packaging. Int. Dairy J. 17, 358-364. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.idairyj.2006.04.001

17. Pintado, C.M.B.S., Oliveira, A., Pampulha, M.E., Ferreira, M.A.S.S. (2005). Prevalence and characterization of Listeria monocytogenes isolated from soft cheese. Food Microbiol. 22, 79-85. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fm.2004.04.004

18. Rosshaug, P.S., Detmer, A., Ingmer, H., Larsen, M.H. (2012). Modeling the growth of Listeria monocytogenes in soft Blue-White cheeses. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 78, 8508-8514. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/AEM.01865-12 PMid:22983971 PMCid:PMC3502931

19. Rudolf, M., Scherer, S. (2001). High incidence of Listeria monocytogenes in European red smear cheese. Int. J. Food Microbiol. 63, 91-98.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0168-1605(00)00413-X

20. Zdolec, N., Lazić, S., Kozačinski, L., Hadžiosmanović, M., Filipović, I. (2007). The inhibitory activity of lactic acid bacteria isolated from fresh cow cheese. Mljekarstvo 57, 5-13.

Copyright

© 2015 Vrdoljak J. This is an open-access article publishedunder the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License whichpermits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,provided the original author and source are credited.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declared that they have no potential conflict of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.

Citation Information

Macedonian Veterinary Review. Volume 39, Issue 1, Pages 59-64, p-ISSN 1409-7621, e-ISSN 1857-7415, DOI: 10.1515/macvetrev-2015-0068, 2016

The all content of the Macedonian Veterinary Review, except where otherwise noted, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.