Avaliação dos parâmetros físico-químicos do queijo muçarela produzido em um laticínio do Alto Sertão Sergipano

Abstract

In Sergipe, the milk production chain directly impacts the region's development, as it is the main source of income for the locals in the Sertão region. In Nossa Senhora da Glória, there are large dairy industries and small-scale cheese factories, with mozzarella cheese being one of the most commonly produced products. Given this, the objective of this study was to evaluate the physicochemical quality of mozzarella cheese produced in a dairy facility in the Alto Sertão region of Sergipe during a quarter of 2024 (June, July, and August). To achieve this, the sampling process involved collecting a 4kg piece of mozzarella cheese from each batch produced daily from two brands. In the quality laboratory, analyses of moisture, fat, total dry extract, and fat in the dry extract were conducted. The results were compared with the legal standards to determine the percentage of samples from two brands that complied with the established standards. Additionally, to compare the samples from two brands, an F-test with a 5% significance level was conducted using Excel to verify the homogeneity of variances between the two brands. The results showed that mozzarella cheese from both brands fully met the physicochemical criteria (100% compliance) for the parameters established by current legislation (moisture at 45% and fat in the dry extract at 46% to 47%). Furthermore, the average values found for both brands regarding fat content (25% to 26.2%) and total dry extract (54%) indicate that the cheeses meet expected quality requirements. Moreover, the variances of the parameters for two brands did not differ significantly from each other (p>0,05). Therefore, the physical-chemical parameters evaluated demonstrate that the mozzarella cheese manufactured in this dairy, during the period studied, presented itself as a quality product and in compliance with Brazilian legislation.