Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Inhibiting chemical or physical change of food by contact... – Including step of packaging
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-10
2001-05-29
Weinstein, Steven (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Inhibiting chemical or physical change of food by contact...
Including step of packaging
C426S324000, C426S128000, C426S334000, C426S582000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06238717
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to cottage cheese products and, more particularly, to cottage cheese products having extended shelf-life. More specifically, the present invention relates to method of making cottage cheese in which calcium carbonate, added via the dressing, is converted to carbonic acid and then carbon dioxide within the packaged cottage cheese. The carbon dioxide generated in situ provides a more stable cottage cheese product without affecting the organoleptic and other desirable properties of the cottage cheese product.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Cottage cheese is a soft, mild acid-coagulated uncured cheese made primarily from a milk source (e.g., pasteurized reduced fat or skim milk). Cottage cheese is essentially relatively small pieces of cheese curd suspended in a creamy dressing. Cottage cheese, and especially reduced-fat or non-fat cottage cheese, are an important items in the diets of many consumers.
Unfortunately, cottage cheese products are significantly more perishable than other cheeses or cheese products. Thus, even with the addition of conventional preservatives, they are normally shipped and stored at refrigerated temperatures in order to prolong their shelf-life. An unopened, cold processed cottage cheese generally has a shelf-life of about 20 to about 30 days at refrigerator temperatures. Once opened by the consumer, even when stored in the coldest part of the refrigerator, the shelf-life can be even further decreased. Because of the short shelf life, cottage cheese cartons or containers are usually printed with an expiration date.
It would be highly desirable, therefore, to provide cottage cheese products having longer shelf-life. In particular, it would be desirable to provide cottage cheese products having shelf-life of about 30 to 40 days or even longer at typical refrigerator temperatures. Moreover, it would be highly desirable if such improved shelf-life could be obtained without sacrificing the desired organoleptic properties and/or without requiring significant process modifications. It would also be desirable to provide cottage cheese products having an increased margin of safety for the consumer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One object of the present invention is to provide cottage cheese products having increased shelf-life. Another object of the present invention is to provide cottage cheese products which are adapted for storage at refrigeration temperatures for longer periods of time without substantial microbiological deterioration. Another object of the present invention is to provide such cottage cheese products having increase shelf-life without sacrificing desired properties. It is still another object of the present invention to provide a method for making nutritious, palatable cottage cheese products, which are capable of storage for longer periods of time at refrigeration temperatures without substantial microbiological deterioration. It is a still further object of the present invention to a method for producing such cottage cheese products without significant process modifications. Still another object is to provide cottage cheese products having reduced risk of spoilage and thus providing increased margins of safety for the consumer. These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and the appended claims.
The present invention provides a process for preparing a packaged cottage cheese product having an increased shelf life, said process comprising (1) preparing a cottage cheese dressing having about 0.05 to about 0.30 percent calcium carbonate at a pH of about 5.6 to about 6.0; (2) preparing a cottage cheese curd at a pH of about 4.0 to about 4.8; (3) blending the cottage cheese dressing and the cottage curd fat to form a cottage cheese product; and (4) packaging the cottage cheese product; wherein under the pH conditions in, or developed in, the packaged cottage cheese product, at least a portion of the calcium carbonate is converted to carbonic acid and wherein at least a portion of the carbonic acid is converted to carbon dioxide; and whereby the shelf life of the packaged cottage cheese product is at least about 38 days at refrigerated temperatures. Using the process of this invention, calcium carbonate is included in the cottage cheese dressing at a pH of about 5.6 to about 6.0, preferably about 5.7 to about 5.8, and most preferably about 5.8. Under these pH conditions, the calcium carbonate is stable (i.e., not appreciably converted to carbonic acid). Once combined with the cottage cheese curd, the pH will drop into the range of about 4.8 to about 5.2. At these lower pH conditions, the calcium carbonate will be converted to carbonic acid and then ultimately to carbon dioxide. If packaged shortly after the cottage cheese dressing and the cottage cheese curd are blended together, the conversion of calcium carbonate to carbonic acid and the conversion of the resulting carbonic acid to carbon dioxide will take place within the package over a period of time (approximately 2 to 3 weeks at a temperature of about 35 to about 40° F.). The conversion of calcium carbonate to carbonic acid to carbon dioxide in situ provides a significantly increased shelf life and/or provides a significantly increased margin of safety for the packaged cottage cheese. Generally, the resulting packaged cottage cheese will have a shelf life of at least about 38 days at refrigeration temperatures. This shelf life represents a significantly longer shelf life as compared with conventional commercial cold pack cottage cheese (i.e., about 20 to about 30 days). Alternatively, for the same aged product, the cottage cheese product of this invention provides a significantly lower risk, and a significantly higher margin of safety, as compared to conventional cottage cheeses. In other words and for example, a 28-day old cottage cheese of the present invention will have a significantly reduced risk of spoilage as compared to a 28-day old conventional cottage cheese. Moreover, this improvement in shelf life and/or increase margin of safety is obtained without significantly affecting the organoleptic properties of the cottage cheese or without significantly modifying the cottage cheese manufacturing process.
This invention also provides a cottage cheese product comprising (1) a cottage cheese dressing containing about 0.05 to 0.30 percent calcium carbonate and (2) a cottage cheese curd; wherein the cottage cheese dressing and cottage cheese curd are blended together and wherein the calcium carbonate is slowly converted to carbonic acid and carbon dioxide in the cottage cheese product. Preferably the cottage cheese product contains about 35 to about 45 percent cottage cheese dressing and about 55 to about 65 percent cottage cheese curd. Preferably, the pH of the cottage cheese dressing before blending is about 5.6 to about 6.0; the pH of the cottage cheese curd before blending is about 4.0 to about 4.8; and the pH of the cottage cheese product is about 4.8 to about 5.2.
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patent: 2962379 (1960-11-01), Leber et al.
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patent: 4701329 (1987-10-01), Nelson et al.
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J. Dairy Science 74(1), 1-7. (Dialog Commercial Data Base Abstract, 07904992, Item 1 from File:5), 1991.*
Techpak (Toledo), 21(21), p. 3 (Dialog Commerc. Data Base Abstract, 280779, Item 1 from File: 79), Oct. 29, 1997.
Hayashi David K.
Nauth Kaiser Rajinder
Fitch Even Tabin & Flannery
Kraft Foods Inc.
Weinstein Steven
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