A STUDY OF THE INFLUENCE OF AGING ON THE MECHANICAL-PROPERTIES OF CHEDDAR CHEESE

The aim of this study was to characterize Cheddar cheese in terms of mechanical properties and to relate these with maturing time. Three different types of cheese were studied: sharp Cheddar, mild Cheddar and Monterey Jack. The mechanical behaviour was described in terms of (a) stress-strain curves as obtained from uniaxial compression tests and (b) the fracture toughness values obtained from bending tests on single-edge notched specimens. For each test, the moisture, fat and protein content of the samples were also measured. In order to study the effect of friction between the sample and the loading plates on the measured stress-strain curve, samples of various heights were tested. However, the different sample height led to different applied strain rates. The data from the fracture tests were analysed using,the European Structural Integrity Society testing protocol for plastics. A discussion is given on the effect of ageing on the mechanical properties.