To produce processed cheese turning hardly brown during transportation and storage at room temperature, natural cheese showing less discoloration should be used as a raw material. The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between the lactose utilization of lactic acid bacteria and the browning of cheese during storage. Three type-cultures (Lactobacillus plantarum and Streptococcus thermophilus) and five isolates from Japanese pickles (Lactobacillus spp.) were used. Cheese curds inoculated with these bacteria were prepared and stored. The L. plantarum-inoculated curds showed smaller ΔE-values after storage, an indicator for the browning, compared to the others. Accumulation of galactose was observed in the curd to which S. thermophilus was inoculated. The sample showed larger ΔE-value after storage. These results showed the lactose utilization of bacteria affected galactose concentration in cheese and its browning during storage. L. plantarum might be a good starter for preparing cheese turning hardly brown.

为了生产在室温下运输和储存期间几乎不变成褐色的加工奶酪，应使用变色较少的天然奶酪作为原料。这项研究的目的是弄清乳酸菌对乳糖的利用与储存过程中奶酪褐变之间的关系。使用了三种类型的培养物（植物乳杆菌和嗜热链球菌）和五种来自日本泡菜的分离物（乳杆菌属）。制备并储存接种有这些细菌的干酪凝乳。该植物乳杆菌-inoculated凝乳显示较小的Δ Ë-储存后的-褐变指标，与其他相比。在接种嗜热链球菌的凝乳中观察到半乳糖的积累。样品在储存后显示出较大的ΔE值。这些结果表明细菌对乳糖的利用影响了奶酪中半乳糖的浓度，并在储存过程中使其变褐。植物乳杆菌可能是制备几乎不变成褐色的奶酪的良好开端。