Free fatty acid profiles of Reggianito Argentino cheese produced with different starters

Reggianito Argentino cheeses were made at pilot plant scale using a natural whey starter (control) and different combinations of strains of selected Lactobacillus helveticus (experimental cheeses). Free fatty acids (FFAs) were extracted from cheese samples at different ripening times, and FFAs from C6:0 to C18:2 were analysed by gas chromatography. The characteristics of the chromatographic profiles were studied by principal components and linear discriminant analysis were performed. Levels of individual FFAs from caproic (C6:0) to linoleic (C18:2) acids increased significantly (p<0.05) during ripening in control and experimental cheeses. Palmitic (C16:0) and oleic (C18:1) acids were the most abundant FFAs throughout ripening in all cheeses. No significant differences were found between FFA profiles of control and experimental cheeses. The possibility of using selected strains of Lactobacillus to replace traditional “natural whey starter” in the production of the cheese is discussed.