Sensory and Shelf-Life Evaluations of Cottage Cheese Treated with Potassium Sorbate

Cottage cheese samples containing 0.025 to 0.20% potassium sorbate were evaluated by a sensory panel of 18 judges, using the duo-trio test method or organoleptically in seven Cottage cheese plants. The samples were then stored at 4 or 7 C and evaluated for shelf-life. The panel did not significantly detect 0.10% or less of potassium sorbate in Cottage cheese by taste or odor. The minimum levels of potassium sorbate detected in the Cottage cheese plants were 0.10% (four plants), 0.05% (two plants), and 0.025% (one plant). Shelf-life was extended in some experiments by 0.05% potassium sorbate and in all experiments by 0.10%. These amounts of potassium sorbate retarded growth of bacteria that produced fruity and putrid odors and slime in Cottage cheese at refrigeration temperatures and bacteria that produced sourness and molds.