On March 18, 2021, the NHC issued the National Food Safety Standard Cheese (GB 5420-2021), which will come into effect on November 22, 2021. Antion analyzed and interpreted its key contents as follows.
Revised definition of cheese
l For cheese products produced from other dairy animal milk (except cow’s milk), the ratio of whey protein and casein in the final product does not exceed the corresponding ratio in the dairy animal milk. It is the first time to indicate that other dairy animal milk can be used in cheese production.
l It is clear that other food materials with specific flavors can be added in the cheese, but the addition amount shall not exceed 8%.
l It is clear that solid cheese products can be processed into a variety of forms, and other food materials can be added (the addition amount shall not exceed 8%) to prevent product adhesion.
l For other food materials added for specific flavors and preventing product adhesion, the total addition amount of those shall not exceed 8%.
It can be seen that after the implementation of the new national standard for Cheese, the types of products will be more abundant, and many imported cheeses will not be restricted due to types, and the domestic cheese market will have more abundant supply.
Deleted the indicators of mold and yeast
Because the types of cheese are diverse, their state, odor are different, it is difficult to define the sensory requirements. Therefore, the sensory requirement was modified to "with the appropriate tissue state of this type of product" in the new national standard for cheese.
Refer to the indicators of the CAC and other countries and regions, the microbial indicators of the new national standard were modified, remove the indicator of yeast and mold; pathogenic bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes) should comply with the GB 29921.
Previously, because of the different requirements for microbial indicators at home and abroad, some imported cheese products will not be allowed to enter China because of excessive mold or yeast. The new national standard deleted the indicators of mold and yeast, to avoid the situation that imported cheese cannot be imported due to excessive yeast and mold.
Standardized the name of cheese
The name of cheese is clarified. Except it's called “cheese（干酪）”, it can also be called "cheese（奶酪）". It is also possible to add the description of characteristics and nutritional requirements before the name "cheese ".
According to China's cheese market, cheese mainly relies on imports, and after the implementation of the new national standard for cheese, the types of imported cheese will also be diversified, which will further enrich the supply of the domestic market.
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