Microbiological characteristics of cheeses aged in animal skins and natural caves

This review investigates the microbial communities present in cheeses aged in animal skin sacks and natural caves. These traditional aging techniques preserve cultural practices and contribute to the unique flavours and textures of cheese. Analysis revealed that cheeses aged in animal skins exhibit a higher number of shared species and a more complex bacterial composition than those aged in caves. The dominant species identified in skin-aged cheeses have shown to be Lactococcus lactis, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, Enterococcus faecalis, and Lactobacillus delbrueckii, while cave-aged cheeses predominantly contain Brevibacterium species, Lactococcus lactis, and Debaryomyces hansenii, with Kluyveromyces lactis dominating the core microbiota. Additionally, cheeses aged in skin sacks exhibited a notable presence of anaerobic flora due to the enclosed environment, whereas the surface of cave-aged cheeses harboured more halophilic microorganisms due to salt treatments.