Madison—The Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research (CDR) will hold its annual Wisconsin Process Cheese short course here Feb. 19-21 at Babcock Hall on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus.
This hands-on short course is designed to cover the basics of formulation and manufacture of pasteurized process and cold-pack cheese products. It begins with the basic theories and chemistry of process cheese manufacture and will include the practical aspects of process cheesemaking.
The hands-on laboratory sessions will also cover the manufacture of various process cheese products.
The course, which qualifies as an elective for the Wisconsin Master Cheesemaker Program, is intended for all dairy and food processors interested in the manufacture and use of process cheese products. It’s designed to be a survey course for industry personnel, and is not for addressing technical issues for research personnel.
The first day kicks off with basic theories of process cheese manufacture, along with properties of emulsifying salts, sodium reduction in processed cheese, packaging of processed cheese and processed cheese products from around the world.
Lab sessions will focus on processed sauces and spreads, as well as cheese food, cold pack and processed cheese sauce/high temperature processing.
The second day will cover basics of dairy-based ingredients used in processed cheese, and the importance of dairy- and cheese-based flavors and EMCs in processed cheese. Students will learn about stabilizers and their impact on processed cheese, ingredients and flavors, HACCP for processed cheese, and defects found in processed cheese, and types of processed cheese around the world.
Instructors will wrap up the course with sessions on the manufacture of shelf-stable processed cheese, how to make spray-dried cheese, sensory evaluation of process cheese, and the current market for process cheese and cold pack.
Cost to attend the workshop is $850 per person, and does not include lodging or parking. For registration information and complete agenda, visit www.cdr.wisc.edu/shortcourses.
