Cheese Powder – A Natural Flavour and Taste Enhancer for numerous products

Article by journalist, cand. scient. Birger Pedersen

Cheese Powders are made from cheese, water and melting salt which are melted, pasteurized and spray-dried. When it comes to the question about the different components of the Cheese Powders and the features which characterize the odour, taste and flavour profiles of the individual cheese types, then we have so far had no official studies to rely on.

This is, however, now being rectified through a research project which began in 2008 and ended in December last year. Lactosan’s R & D Manager, Inger Hansen, immediately responded to the idea of a collaboration with the Department of Food Science, University of Copenhagen, represented by Professor Ylva Ardo (project leader), post. doc. Camilla Varming, associate professor Mikael Agerlin Petersen and post.doc. Lene Tranberg Andersen.

Examination of Cheese Powder types
Processing Cheese Powders from well-matured cheeses gives us a wide range of flavour components. Some of them have even a flavour and taste enhancing effect. Therefore the researchers examined different Cheese Powder types.

“We started to perform sensory analyses of different kinds of Cheese Powders made from matured cheeses and then compared the sensory characteristics with the flavour compounds that we analyzed chemically“ says Camilla Varming.

Overall, it appeared then that there were big differences in the odour, taste and flavour profiles of the different kinds of Cheese Powders.

“Besides this study we have by means of gas chromatography-olfactometry, where the nose is used as a detector, determined which aroma compounds are the most important for the odour of the Cheese Powders. Furthermore, the sensory profiling of the Cheese Powders will be pursued correlated to the chemical taste components of free fatty acids and amino acids“ says Camilla Varming.

Great Satisfaction at Lactosan A/S
The objective was to achieve an identification of flavour compounds in matured cheeses to use as natural flavour and taste enhancement, and we succeeded.

Cheese powder is found in a wide range of products such as ready meals, sauces, soups, desserts, snacks, cakes, biscuits, sauces, in spring rolls, in crisp bread and in the UK market in popular biscuits.

“We are now aware about the breadth of compounds contained in Cheese Powders, and how we can make new combinations of the naturally occurring flavour compounds for flavour and taste enhancement“ says Inger Hansen, R&D Manager at Lactosan A/S.


Inger Hansen, R&D Manager

Contact Lactosan
You are most welcome to contact us for additional information about this research. We should also be happy to assist you with your specific requirements so that we can tailor a solution for you based on one or more Cheese Powder types having their individual advantages as Natural Flavour and Taste Enhancers.

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