Food and Drug Regulations

B.08.034 (1) [S]. Cheddar Cheese

• (a) shall

  • (i) be the product that is made by coagulating milk, milk products or a combination of those things with the aid of bacteria to form a curd and subjecting the curd to the cheddar process or any process other than the cheddar process that produces a cheese having the same physical, chemical and organoleptic properties as those of cheese produced by the cheddar process,

  • (i.1) have a casein content that is derived from milk or from ultrafiltered milk, partly skimmed milk, ultrafiltered partly skimmed milk, skim milk, ultrafiltered skim milk or cream, rather than from other milk products, that is at least 83 per cent of the total protein content of the cheese,

  • (i.2) have a whey protein to casein ratio that does not exceed the whey protein to casein ratio of milk, and

  • (ii) contain

    • (A) not more than 39 per cent moisture, and

    • (B) not less than 31 per cent milk fat;

• (b) may contain

  • (i) salt,

  • (ii) flavouring preparations other than cheese flavouring,

  • (iii) bacterial cultures to aid further ripening,

  • (iv) one or more of the following colouring agents:

    • (A) in an amount consistent with good manufacturing practice, annatto, beta-carotene, chlorophyll, paprika, riboflavin, turmeric, and

    • (B) in an amount not exceeding 35 parts per million, either singly or in combination thereof, beta-apo-8’-carotenal, ethyl beta-apo-8’-carotenoate,

  • (v) calcium chloride as a firming agent in an amount not exceeding 0.02 per cent of the milk and milk products used,

  • (vi) wood smoke as a preservative in an amount consistent with good manufacturing practice,

  • (vii) the following preservatives:

    • (A) propionic acid, calcium propionate, sodium propionate or a combination thereof in an amount not exceeding 2,000 parts per million calculated as propionic acid,

    • (B) sorbic acid, calcium sorbate, potassium sorbate, sodium sorbate or a combination thereof in an amount not exceeding 3,000 parts per million calculated as sorbic acid,

    • (C) any combination of the preservatives named in clauses (A) and (B) in an amount not exceeding 3,000 parts per million calculated as propionic acid and sorbic acid respectively, or

    • (D) natamycin applied to the surface of the cheese in an amount that does not exceed 20 parts per million or, if the cheese is grated or shredded, 10 parts per million, and

  • (viii) in the case of grated or shredded cheddar cheese, calcium silicate, microcrystalline cellulose or cellulose, or a combination of them, as an anticaking agent, the total amount not to exceed 2.0 per cent; and

• (c) shall not be labelled or advertised as cheddar cheese that has been aged unless

  • (i) it is made solely with milk, ultrafiltered milk, partly skimmed milk, ultrafiltered partly skimmed milk, skim milk, ultrafiltered skim milk or cream or a combination of those things, and

  • (ii) it has been aged for at least nine months and the period for which it has been aged is specified on the principal display panel of that label or in that advertising.

(1.1) Cheddar cheese may contain more than the maximum percentage of moisture set out in clause (1)(a)(ii)(A) and less than the minimum percentage of milk fat set out in clause (1)(a)(ii)(B) if

• (a) a statement or claim set out in column 4 of any of items 12 to 14, 16, 20, 21 and 45 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims is shown on the label of the product as part of the common name; and

• (b) the cheese has the characteristic flavour and texture of cheddar cheese.

(1.2) The reference to “83 per cent” in subparagraph (1)(a)(i.1) shall be read as “78 per cent” if

• (a) a statement or claim set out in column 4 of any of items 12 to 14, 16, 20, 21 and 45 of the Table of Permitted Nutrient Content Statements and Claims is shown on the label of the product as part of the common name; and

• (b) the cheese has the characteristic flavour and texture of cheddar cheese.

(2) No person shall, in the manufacture of the cheddar cheese, use any enzyme other than

• (a) aminopeptidase derived from Lactococcus lactis, chymosin A derived from Escherichia coli K-12, GE81 (pPFZ87A), chymosin B derived from Aspergillus niger var. awamori, GCC0349 (pGAMpR) or from Kluyveromyces marxianus var. lactis, DS1182 (pKS105), lipase derived from Animal pancreatic tissue; Aspergillus niger var.; Aspergillus oryzae var.; Edible forestomach tissue of calves, kids or lambs; Rhizopus oryzae var. or from Aspergillus oryzae (MLT-2) (pRML 787) (p3SR2); Rhizomucor miehei (Cooney and Emerson) (previous name: Mucor miehei (Cooney and Emerson)); Rhizopus niveus, milk coagulating enzyme derived from Rhizomucor miehei (Cooney and Emerson) (previous name: Mucor miehei (Cooney and Emerson)), from Mucor pusillus Lindt by pure culture fermentation process or from Aspergillus oryzae RET-1 (pBoel777), pepsin derived from glandular layer of porcine stomach, phospholipase derived from Aspergillus oryzae (pPFJo142) or rennet derived from aqueous extracts from the fourth stomach of calves, kids or lambs;

• (b) protease derived from Aspergillus oryzae; and

• (c) lysozyme derived from egg-white.

(2.1) No person shall use an enzyme referred to in subsection (2) at a level of use above that consistent with good manufacturing practice.

(3) Where a flavouring preparation is added to a cheese as permitted in subsection (1), the words “with (naming the flavouring preparation)” shall be added to the common name in any label.

(4) Only a cheese to which wood smoke has been added as permitted in subsection (1) may be described by the term “smoked” on a label.

(5) Where a cheese is labelled as permitted in subsection (4), the word “smoked” shall be shown on the principal display panel.