Physicochemical and Sensory Properties of Nanopowdered Chitosan-Added Maribo Cheese during Ripening

Nanopowdered chitosan (NPC) has high biological activities, such as blood cholesterol lowering effect and antidiabetic activity. This study is carried out to determine the effects of nano-powdered chitosan-added Maribo cheese (NCMC) for the physicochemical properties and sensory analysis during its ripening at 14℃ for 6 mon. From the results, the moisture and fat levels are not significantly influenced from the addition of chitosan (p>0.05), but ash contents increased with increasing chitosan concentrations and the protein contents decreased with increasing chitosan concentrations. In the short-chain fatty acids analysis during the ripening, the total production is initially 13.79 ppm in 0.2% NCMC and 13.81 ppm in control, and their levels have steadily increased to 59.94 and 53.11 ppm, respectively. For the color levels, the L* values decreased, while the a* and b* values significantly increased during ripening for all samples (p<0.05). In texture analysis, the hardness and gumminess of NCMC significantly decreased as compared to the control during ripening (p<0.05), while the cohesiveness, springiness and chewiness were not significantly different among the treatments (p>0.05). In sensory analysis, the butyric off-flavor and bitterness increased slightly with increasing concentrations of NCMC during ripening. The overall acceptability of 0.2% NCMC held the highest score amongst the samples during the ripening. From the results obtained, the 0.2% NCMC was preferred during the ripening and observed the possibility of functional cheese.