Study of starter culture persistence and performance in pasture production of Fromadzo PDO cheese

The aim of the present research was to evaluate the performance of two autochthonous Lactococcus lactis starter cultures, in pasture productions of Fromadzo PDO cheese, in order to establish their potentiality in terms of cheese colonization, persistence and quality of the final product. Three Fromadzo productions were set up, starting from pasture milk, and two autochthonous starter mixtures (AS1 and AS2) plus a commercial starter were used, separately, in each production. The fate of the starters inoculated was followed by Repetitive element palindromic-PCR and their influence on the quality of the final product was evaluated by a taste panel. The results obtained in this study highlight the potential of AS2 mixture and, in particular, of the strain L. lactis subsp. lactis 60ME1MRS, in terms of colonization and persistence in Fromadzo PDO cheese. The performance of this strain, which seems to positively affect the flavour richness of the final product, deserves to be more extensively studied for possible future applications.