Cheese it: USU’s home for top research facility
Ice cream, basketball and the Scotsman may spur school pride, but, for many students, cheese also tops the list.
USU has been a leading cheese research institute for years. As one of five research centers in the United States, USU has taken part of many projects to advance cheese research, nutrition and new types of cheese.
In the 1960s cheese research at the Western Dairy Center on campus started to accelerate. Don McMahon, professor of dairy food processing and director of the Western Dairy Center, said Utah State has taken part with dozens of research projects.
“We do basic, fundamental and scientific research,” McMahon said. “We do basic projects up to ones that are more high in nature and are designed to promote economic growth in the state.”
When undergoing research projects, McMahon said it is important to have people who are well-trained in the making of cheese. He said roughly five years ago cheese research became a higher priority into which they invested more time and money.
However, the investment was not just to learn the basics of cheese.
“We are working to develop some premium cheese products that we could sell here,” McMahon said. “It can be used as a basis for our research so we could provide those recipes to companies that may be interested in making the different cheeses.”
One research project the Western Dairy Center has been undertaking is the quality of low fat cheese. McMahon said one part of the research project has been to find a true low fat cheese. A low-fat cheese is one that has only three grams of fat per serving and McMahon said there are many good low-in-fat cheeses but no true low-fat cheese.
Utah State is also working with the five dairy research centers across the nation to take a look at low-fat cheese. McMahon said they are focusing towards producing the correct flavor of the cheese and controlling the unwanted flavors. He said the research is looking to improve the texture of low-fat cheese so it does not become hard and rubbery.
“This project has been done in a systematic approach,” McMahon said. “We have some projects that will take us two or three years to finish but that is so we can understand what happens in a low-fat cheese. It really is different from regular cheese.”
McMahon said other projects the center has been working on is creating a healthier cheese. He said they have worked on fortifying the cheese with Omega-3 fatty acids and Vitamin D.
When making and researching the cheese, temperature and age help determine the outcome of the product. McMahon said some cheese could be stored from four months to two years and placed in cold storage at 42 or 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
When researching the texture of the cheese product, McMahon said the process is unique. He said researchers will grind cheese into small particles and work to reform the block. He said this allows them to study the cheese product.
McMahon said many cheeses that are created come from experience and research efforts. He said these specific cheeses have been given local names. For example, one type of cheese studied at the Western Dairy Center gives a traditional Parmesan flavor.
McMahon said when researchers decided this was a cheese product they could make on a regular basis, they needed to create a name. Because the cheese is an Italian style, the name came up Aggiano.
“We wanted the name to say something about the university, with an Italian twist on it,” he said. “It’s one of our most popular.”
Another popular flavor of cheese is called Old Juniper, named after the old tree in Logan Canyon. McMahon said this cheese is unique because special cultures were added and the cheese was placed through a special aging process that helps to enhance its rich cheddar flavor. He said this cheese is typically sold when it becomes four to five months old.
For more information or to order the cheese, visit online at www.usu.edu/aggieicecream/cheese.cfm.
–courtnie.packer@aggiemail.usu.edu