ABSTRACT
More than 9.5 millions tons of cheeses are produced per year over the world. Among them, cheeses involving thermophilic lactic starters, either alone or in combination with other starters, are widespread. The most largely produced are Swiss-type cheeses and pasta filata (stretched curd cheeses), with their respective “archetypes”— Gruyère/Emmental and mozzarella (Table 1). The origin of Gruyère-type cheese is still uncertain. Medieval manuscripts already described the production of these kinds of cheeses. In the 13th century, highlanders from Franche-Comté and Switzerland produced large (about 30 kg) cooked cheeses as a way to keep the milk produced by grazing cows during summer. The term Gruyère appeared formally in the 17th century. Then variations occurred in the technology or ripening conditions, leading to more or less heavier cheeses (60 to 130 kg), such as Beaufort and Comté, and then Emmental with big eyes in the 19th century. The origin of pasta filata cheeses is also very ancient: the consumption of provolone (mostly smoked and well matured) is described in Roman times (1).
