Characterization of the traditional cheese Adghess produced from cow's milk

In Algeria, milk is traditionally transformed into several forms to allow its preservation, particularly fermented products, among which  cheese has been the pride of the culinary tradition for a long time. Adghess is a fresh cheese frequently made in the region, especially in  rural areas. Adghess is a product poorly known outside its original geographical area. The objective of this study was to characterize  Adghess cheese by determining some of its physicochemical and microbiological characteristics. The characterization was preceded by a  survey carried out in Oum El Bouaghi with 50 households in order to determine the production diagram of this cheese. The survey was  carried out by means of a questionnaire based on random sampling. Ten samples were collected at the level of five farms located in the  region and were analyzed for physicochemical attributes such as pH, total dry extract, total lipids as well as, dornic acidity, and microbial  population such as total flora, total and fecal coliforms, Salmonella, Clostridium, yeast, and molds. The results obtained showed that the  cheese samples analyzed were acidic (pH and an acidity of 4.4 and 38.4°D, respectively). For the total dry extract of Adghess cheese is 334  g kg-1 with a lipid level of 91 g kg-1, the recorded ash content was 3.8g/kg, while sodium chloride was 2.4g/kg. The microbiological  results showed a high content of the total flora (7.8×108cfu g1): Total coliforms were noted to be present in all the analyzed samples, with  the absence of fecal coliforms. Unlike molds, yeasts marked their presence (4.6×102cfu g-1). The microbiological findings revealed a  high level of total flora (7.8108 cfu g-1): total coliforms were found to be present in all of the examined samples, although fecal coliforms  were not found. Yeasts (4.6 102 cfu g-1) left a trace of their existence, unlike molds. The absence of all the pathogenic microorganisms  sought (Salmonella, Clostidium, and molds) made the cheese healthier for consumption. Overall, the hygienic quality of the cheese  studied was satisfactory. This work constituted the starting point to launch research on this product in order to preserve the know-how  on the one hand and achieve the objective of manufacturing it on artisanal, then industrial scales.