Question

Why swiss cheese have big holes? Name the bacteria responsible for it.

Answer 1

Hint:Microorganisms are the smallest living organisms that are present everywhere in the environment. They are also found in our food. These mini creature accelerate several biological processes

Complete Answer:
Due to the presence of a high amount of carbon dioxide swiss cheese has big holes. Swiss cheese is made by pasteurized milk. That becomes sour due to the presence of lactic acid bacteria. The lactic acid bacteria form lactose in milk. Propionibacterium shermanii form propionic acid during the fermentation by changing the molecular structure of lactic acid and it get changes to propionic acid and carbon dioxide. Because of this creation of large holes in cheese occurs. Swiss cheese is also different in flavor because of the formation of propionic acid and gas.

Additional information:
Presence of microbes in household products:
>Dough is fermented by baker’s yeast for making bread . The puffed up appearance of dough is due to the production of $CO_2$ gas.
>Microbes are also used to ferment fish, soyabean and bamboo- shoots to make food.
>Microbes are used in cheese for different flavor, taste and texture
>Roquefort cheese is ripened by growing a specific fungus that gives them a specific flavor.
>In some parts of southern India today is a traditional drink which is made by fermenting sap from palms.

Note:Propionibacteriumplays an important role in the formation of Emmental cheese maasdam cheese and some extent like jarlsberg cheese, leerdammer and maasdam cheese . It is a gram positive , non-motile bacterium. The large holes in the swiss cheese are producrd through lactic acid,the bacteria form acetate, propionic acid and carbon dioxide as a byproduct