Variability of the species and strain phenotype composition of the non-starter lactic acid bacterial population of cheddar cheese manufactured in a commercial creamery

The non-starter lactic acid bacteria (NSLAB) present in cheddar cheese manufactured in a commercial creamery was monitored phenotypically to the strain level over a period of 12 months to examine the effects of maturity status and manufacturing practices on the composition of the population. Five Lactobacillus spp. and Leuconostoc lactis were identified among the 459 isolates selected. The predominant NSLAB, Lactobacillus paracasei and Lactobacillus brevis, were present in 59 and 31% of the cheeses examined and represented 52.7 and 25.8%, respectively, of the isolates identified. Among the NSLAB screened 71 different phenotypic profiles were identified and these included 26 biotypes of Lb. paracasei, 14 Lb. brevis, 11 Lactobacillus plantarum, 10 Lactobacillus curvatus and 7 Leuc. lactis. The average number of strains recovered from a cheese was 3.9±2.1 and ranged from 1 to 11. Although approximately 70% of the cheese samples were dominated by three or less strains the NSLAB populations were heterogeneous and the majority (61.5%) were comprised of four or more strains of one or more species. Only 30 of the biotypes were recovered from more than one population. There was no evidence for the repeated recurrence of any of the strains isolated although some of the Lb. paracasei strains were present intermittently in cheeses throughout the 12-month manufacturing period. Six Lb. brevis strains also recurred in some of the cheeses produced in a limited period during the autumn. Pronounced shifts in the species complement and strain profile occurred during maturation, while the average number of strains present in the cheese decreased with increasing maturity. Microbiological examination of the NSLAB population of cheese either produced in different vats during the same production run or manufactured in the same vat but in different production runs (vat fills) indicated that the number of strains common to paired samples from two vats or a single vat in successive production runs was only 1.7±1.4 and 1.5±1.2, respectively, and confirmed the inherent variability that exists, both within and between production runs, in the non-starter population of cheese manufactured in a commercial creamery.