302 Chapter 11
Table 11.13. Typical process cheese formulations for PC 1 , PCF 2 , and PCS 3.
% Ingredients PC PCF PCS
Natural cheese^4 80 71 60
Dried cream 6.1 – –
Nonfat dried milk – 3 4
Whey powder – 2.9 3.6
Butter oil (anhydrous) 1.9 1.4 0.95
Whey protein concentrate – – 1.5
Emulsifying salt(s)^5 2.25 – 2.50 2.25 – 2.50 2.25 – 2.50
Salt 0.5 0.6 0.8
Acidifying agent(s)^5 – – 0.3
Mold inhibitor^5 – – 0.2
Water 9 16.6 26.4
Total 100 100 1001 Pasteurized process cheese formula balanced to 39.5% moisture, 30% fat, and 2% salt
2 Pasteurized process cheese food formula balanced to 43.5% moisture, 25% fat, and 2% salt
3 Pasteurized process cheese spread formula balanced to 49.5% moisture, 20% fat, and 2% salt
4 Natural cheese may be a combination of one or more cheeses with different degrees of maturity
5 Ingredients may be one or a combination of the allowed ingredients for each of their respective categories as described
by the CFR (21CFR 133.169 to 133.180)
Adapted from Kapoor and Metzger (2004)
is direct steam injection. Kapoor and Metzger
(2008) have extensively described the operat-
ing conditions of various cookers that are
used for process cheese manufacture.
After the molten process cheese is
removed from the cooker it is subjected to
forming and packaging processes to produce
loaves, slices (slice - on - slice and individually
wrapped slices), sauces, etc. Process cheese
loaves are commonly used in both the retail
and food service sectors. Slice - on - slice pro-
cess cheese mainly is used in food service
applications, whereas individually wrapped
slices are primarily for retail sale.
In the case of process cheese loaf manu-
facture, aluminum foil or heat sealable
plastic - lined cardboard boxes typically are
fi lled with the molten process cheese. The
quantity, depending on the type of market,
varies from 30, 225 - g consumer packs to two
5 - lb bulk packs. As discussed above, process
cheese slices are produced and sold in the
United States as slice - on - slice or individually
wrapped slices. The manufacture and pack-
aging of sliced process cheese generally
involves one or a combination of the follow-
ing three methods: roller method, band or
strip method, and injection method (Berger
et al., 1998 ). The roller and band or strip
method are common in the production of
slice - on - slice process cheese. They involve a
moving, cooling belt onto which the molten
process cheese is poured and cooled. The
cooled process cheese solidifi es into a process
cheese strip, which is removed from the belt
with knives and cut into ribbons and slices.
The injection method is commonly used for
making individually wrapped slices; the
molten process cheese is placed in preformed
cylindrical tube - shaped packages, sealed,
and then pressed in the form of slices (Berger
et al., 1998 ).Chemistry of Process Cheese
In contrast to natural cheeses such as cheddar,
the microstructure of process cheese is a
stable oil - in - water emulsion supported by a
re - formed gel network of hydrated, emulsi-
fi ed caseins. Figure 11.7 describes the
changes in the microstructure of process
cheese during manufacture.
Adding emulsifying salts during process
cheese manufacture enhances the emulsifi ca-