Abstract

This research was carried out to evaluate the influence of seasonal variation in physicochemical composition and microbiological profile of buffalo milk and of the artisanal cream and butter types cheeses produced on Marajó Island. Eighteen farms located of the island were involved in the study. Milk and cheese quality were evaluated in two typical seasons. The rainy, from January to June and dry, from July to December. Samples were submitted to a detailed set of laboratorial analyses. Physicochemical composition of buffalo milk was influenced by the seasons. Compared to rainy, the dry period showed an increase in fat (5.53±0.71 to 6.74±1.19) and lactose (4.77±0.20 to 5.20±0.20) concentrations and reduction in total solids (16.89±0.92 to 15.77±1.54), nonfat dry matter (9.94±0.36 to 8.99±1.23) and minerals (0.84±0.12 to 0.62±0.09) concentrations (p<0.05). The season influence was observed in physicochemical composition of both cheese-types. Compared to rainy season, in the cream cheese type, higher values (p<0.05) were found for titratable acidity (0.63±0.02 to 0.78±0.15), fat (32.38±3.22 to 36.89±4.59), fat in the dry matter (55.06±3.26 to 63.92±2.49) but lower values for water activity (0.99±0.02 to 0.49±0.03), minerals (2.37±0.55 to 1.40±0.02) and calcium (0.28±0.08 to 0.18±0.07). For the butter cheese type, in the dry season, higher values were found only for titratable acidity (0.49±0.02 to 0.38±0.0) and lower values for water activity (0.18±0.07 to 0.45±0.08). The study have shown that some components of the buffalo milk and artisanal cheeses produced on Marajó Island are influenced by the dry and rainy typical seasons and therefore, some sensory variations are expected around the year.

Keywords:

Artisanal Marajó cheese, raw milk quality, seasonal variations,

References

Competing interests

The authors have no competing interests.

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The authors have no competing interests.