Kerry Co-operative is trialling a mozzarella style cheese made using dried milk extract and coconut oil.
After the cream has been removed from milk and the whey drained off, what remains is casein. Kerry Co-op is now combining this casein with coconut oil to produce a cheese alternative that looks and tastes remarkably like mozzarella. The product has already proved popular in Britain, where it has gone on sale.
Mozzarella is best known as the stretchy cheese they put on pizzas.
Mozzarella is best known as the cheese used on pizzas, and experts at the co-op facility in Listowel, Kerry, say the real test of the product is how it performs when cooked. To prove the point, they have even set up a small kitchen laboratory to put it through its paces.
This mozzarella is made up of protein and fats, just like any other cheese.
Like traditional cheese, this mozzarella style product is made up of protein and fat. The protein comes from dairy sources, as it is derived from casein, while the fat is vegetable-based, coming from coconut oil. The co-op says coconut oil is used because of limited milk supplies, with its cream instead being sold as a standalone product.
Staff at the co-op believe the taste is very close to that of real mozzarella. So far, the cheese has been supplied exclusively to the catering trade, but following its success, Kerry Co-operative is now considering developing a similar product with a cheddar style flavour.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 22 May 1981. The reporter is George Devlin.
