Effect of 3D printing on the structure and textural properties of processed cheese

Three-dimensional (3D) printing is a process whereby complex three-dimensional objects are generated. In this study, 3D printing was investigated for food applications, using a commercially available processed cheese as the printing material. After melting at 75 °C for 12 min, the processed cheese was printed using a modified commercial 3D printer at low or high extrusion rates. Comparative assessment of untreated, melted and printed cheeses was conducted employing texture profile analysis, rheology, colourimetry and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). Processing (i.e., melting and extrusion) had a significant impact upon cheese properties. Melted and printed cheese samples were significantly (P < 0.05) less hard, by up to 49%, and both exhibited higher degrees of meltability, ranging from 14% to 21%, compared to untreated cheese samples. This shows that 3D printing substantially changes the properties of processed cheese, possibly offering new potential applications for tailoring structures using this novel process.