Standard 4.2.4A
 
PRIMARY PRODUCTION AND PROCESSING STANDARD FOR SPECIFIC CHEESES
 
 
(Australia only)
 
Purpose and commentary
 
This Standards sets out primary production and processing requirements for Gruyere, Sbrinz, Emmental and Roquefort cheese.
 
Table of Provisions
 
1            Requirements for certain cheese and cheese products
 
Clauses
 
1            Requirements for certain cheese and cheese products
 
Cheese and cheese products specified in Column 1 of the Table to this clause may be manufactured from milk and milk products that have been produced and processed using a method that –
 
(a)          ensures that the cheese produced achieves an equivalent level of safety protection as cheese prepared from milk or milk products that have been heat treated in accordance with paragraph 2(1)(a) of Standard 1.6.2; and
(b)          is set out in the legislation or documentation listed in Column 2 of the Table to this clause; and
(c)          complies with the conditions, if any, specified in Column 3 of the Table to this clause.
 
Table to clause 1
 

Column 1
Column 2
Column 3

Cheese and cheese products
Legislation or documentation
Conditions

Gruyere, Sbrinz or Emmental cheese
The Ordinance on Quality Assurance in the Dairy Industry of the Swiss Federal Council of 18 October 1995
 

Roquefort
The Ministerial Order of 30 December 1993 on requirements relating to the premises, equipment and operation of milk collection or standardization centres and of establishments involved in the treatment or processing of milk or milk-based products
The Ministerial Order of 18 March 1994 on the hygiene of milk products and collection
The Ministerial Order of 30 March 1994 on the microbiological criteria that drinking milk and milk-based products must satisfy in order to be placed on the market
The Ministerial Order of 28 June 1994 on the identification and sanitary approval of establishments placing on the market animal foodstuffs or foodstuffs of animal origin and on health marking
The Ministerial Order of 2 March 1995 on the approval of milk collection, standardization or treatment centres and of establishments involved in the processing of milk and milk-based products
(1) The following matters must be monitored and recorded during cheese production:
 
(a)        pH during the acidification process; and
(b) salt concentration; and
(c) moisture content.
 
(2) Unpasteurised milk for cheese production must be tested and demonstrated to have no detected levels of Listeria monocytogenes in 25 ml of milk per tanker.
(3) The cheese must be stored at an appropriate temperature for a period of no less than 90 days from the date of manufacture.

 
Editorial note:
 
Legislation or documentation will only be listed in the Table to clause 1 if it incorporates or provides for methods which provide a level of safety protection equivalent to that provided by a process that includes treatment of the milk or milk product in accordance with paragraph 3(2)(a) of Standard 4.2.4, and has adequate hazard identification and process controls.
 
AQIS quarantine requirements for the importation of dairy products from approved countries define the date of manufacture for cheese as the date the curd is set.
 
Cheese and cheese products must also be manufactured using measures to ensure compliance with requirements in Standard 1.6.1 – Microbiological Limits for Food, Chapter 3 - Food Safety Standards to the extent that these requirements are not specifically covered in clause 3 of this Standard, and any applicable State and Territory requirements in relation to cheese production, including any specific requirements in relation to the safety of raw milk and raw milk cheese production.
 
In relation to condition (1)(a) for Roquefort, the monitoring of pH should ensure that rapid acidification occurs, that is, the pH should fall to below pH 5.0 within the first 6 to 8 hours following addition of the starter culture.
 
Clause 4 of Standard 1.2.4 requires ingredients to be declared using the common name of the ingredient, or a name that describes the true nature of the ingredient, or if applicable a generic name.  This requirement means that in relation to cheese made from unpasteurised milk, the ingredient declaration should include a statement that the milk is unpasteurised, and in the case of cheese made other than from cow’s milk, should also include the common name of the species from which the milk is sourced.