New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
Title 1 - DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS
Chapter IV - Markets
Subchapter A - Grading of Farm Products (Article 12-A Agriculture and Markets Law)
Part 162 - Official State Brands Or Trademarks
Section 162.12 - Mozzarella cheese standards

Universal Citation: 1 NY Comp Codes Rules and Regs ยง 162.12

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024

(a) General. New York State Seal of Quality mozzarella cheese must be made using only New York State milk and must meet the fat and moisture standards as set forth in 1 NYCRR Part 17, section 17.67 for whole milk mozzarella, section 17.68 for part skim mozzarella, section 17.69 for low moisture, whole milk mozzarella and section 17.70 for low moisture, part skim mozzarella. The determination of the Seal of Quality grade of mozzarella cheese shall be on the basis of rating (A) flavor, (B) body and texture, (C) color, (D) finish and appearance, and (E) melt (for low moisture cheeses only). The rating of each quality factor shall be established on the basis of characteristics present in cheese from any sample. The final grade shall be established on the basis of the lowest rating of any one of the quality characteristics. Seal of Quality mozzarella cheese shall conform to the following requirements and standards:

(1) Flavor. Shall possess desirable and pleasing flavor and odor characteristics. It may possess bitter, fruity, metallic/oxidized, and unclean type flavors, upon critical examination, to a very slight degree. It may possess acid, cooked, and feed type flavors to a slight degree. Cheese may have a flat and salt flavor to a definite degree. A salt flavor cannot be to the extent that the natural cheese flavor is masked over. Mozzarella cheese may not possess fermented, rancid, or yeasty flavors to any degree.

(2) Body and texture. Mozzarella cheese of this grade shall be firm bodied, whole milk mozzarella may be less firm than low moisture, part skim. Cheese shall have uniform firmness on all sides. The texture must be smooth, with the exception that a slight roughness to the surface due to salt may be apparent. The texture and body of the cheese should be smooth and springy, very close and uniform, and not have a corky or curdy appearance. Whole milk mozzarella is permitted a slight degree of free fat on the interior surfaces. While the texture of low moisture, part skim mozzarella cheese should be devoid of free fat on the interior surfaces. In addition, the cheese must be free of any evidence of gas formation, a few slits may be noted in the interior, however, such slits shall not be the result of gas formation. Shredded cheese in bulk or retail packages shall be reasonably uniform in size and be reasonably free of caking.

(3) Color. Cheese may be white to a light creamy color but should not have a dull chalky appearance. The color may be slightly wavy in appearance. The surface of the cheese should have a glossy sheen. Any mottling or unnatural coloration shall not be present.

(4) Finish and appearance. The wrapper or covering shall adequately and securely envelop the cheese, be neat, unbroken and fully protect the surface but may be slightly wrinkled. The basic shape of the cheese shall be reasonably uniform throughout. Sides may be slightly rounded but not appear huffed which could indicate the presence of gas. To a slight degree, cracks could be present on the surface. There shall not be any mold on the surface or within the cheese. Edges may be rounded to a degree.

(5) Melt (applies to low moisture cheeses only). When melted on a pizza shell, mozzarella cheese should not show excessive blistering, or burning, or unnatural coloration. There shall only be very slight signs of free oil on the surface of the melted cheese. Cheese should melt down and uniformly cover the surface. The mouth-feel of the cheese should be smooth. Cheese of this grade should have at least a six inch stretch and show a firm string when lifted with a fork. In all cases where other defects are noted under a category, the defect shall be described and the official grader will determine the extent to which it should be allowed. The melt test shall be done in the following manner:
(i) Apparatus.
(a) Balance scale of 500 gram capacity sensitive to 50 mg. plus or minus.

(b) Oven capable of heating to 550 degrees Fahrenheit uniformly over the entire surface.

(c) Pizza tray of appropriate size.

(d) Household type shredder.

(e) Table fork.

(ii) Ingredients.
(a) Heavy concentrated tomato puree (11.3 percent to 15 percent of natural tomato soluble solids).

(b) Pizza shell, 1/4" minimum thickness, premade, store bought, slightly baked. May be frozen.

(c) Shredded low moisture cheese.

(iii) Procedure.
(a) Preheat oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

(b) Prepare pizza using the following amounts or exact proportions thereof:
(1) Evenly spread four oz. pizza sauce over 12 inch diameter 1/4 thick shell. Leave 1/2" around edge of shell.

(2) Evenly distribute 70 grams of shredded mozzarella over 1/2 of the 12" diameter shell. A second sample may be used on the other half of shell.

(3) Place prepared pizza in the preheated oven at 500 degrees Fahrenheit for eight to ten minutes. If using frozen shell, unthaw and bake one to two minutes longer.

(c) Remove pizza from oven, wait one minute and then insert tip of table fork into the cheese, lift vertically to determine length of stretch.

(d) Observe for free fat, color, blistering or burn and degree of coverage.

(b) Flavor.

(1) Very slight. Barely detectable upon critical examination.

(2) Slight. Detected only upon critical examination.

(3) Definite. Not intense but detectable.

(4) Pronounced. So intense as to be easily identified.

(5) Feed. Feed flavors (such as alfalfa, sweet clover, silage or similar feed) in milk carried through into the cheese.

(6) Acid. May be slight if cheese is aged over one week. Sharp and puckery to the taste, characteristics of lactic acid.

(7) Bitter. Distasteful, similar to taste of quinine. May be present in cheese one week or more old.

(8) Fruity. A sweet fruit-like flavoring resembling apples; generally increasing in intensity as the cheese ages. Acceptable in cheese one week or more in age.

(9) Flat. Insipid, lacking in flavor development, devoid of flavor. Present most likely if cheese is less than one week old.

(10) Cooked. Mildly suggestive of uncleanliness in addition to a whey taint.

(11) Metallic/oxidized. Flat, metal-like taste and puckery sensation.

(12) Rancid. Characterized by:
(i) a slow reaction time;

(ii) its prominence after the sample is expectorated; and

(iii) its persistence.

The flavor is bitter; soapy, very disagreeable and repulsive.

(13) Yeasty. Identified by its sour, yeasty taste and slightly fragrant odor.

(c) Body and texture.

(1) Smooth. Feels silky; not dry and coarse or rough.

(2) Firm. Feels solid and offers slight resistance to pressure. The rind will be somewhat firmer than the interior of the cheese.

(3) Open. Mechanical openings that are irregular in shape and are caused by workmanship and not gas fermentation.

(4) Weak. Requires little pressure to crush, is soft but is not necessarily sticky like a pasty cheese.

(5) Pasty. Usually weak body and when the cheese is rubbed between the thumb and fingers it becomes sticky and smeary.

(6) Gassy. Gas holes of various sizes and may be scattered.

(7) Slits. Narrow or elongated openings generally associated with cheese that is gassy or yeasty.

(8) Corky. Dry, hard, overfirm, stiff, tough.

(9) Curdy. Characteristic of freshly made or uncured cheese. Cheese is hard and when pressure is applied there is a tendency for the cheese to spring back to its original shape.

(10) Free fat. Greasy or oily presence on the cheese that can be felt or is visible.

(d) Color.

(1) Uncolored. Absence of artificial coloring.

(2) Wavy. Unevenness of color which appears as layers or waves.

(3) Mottled. Rounded, irregularly shaped areas of light and dark shades of color.

(4) Unnatural. Color that is not normally associated with mozzarella cheese.

(e) Finish and appearance.

(1) Rind. Hard coating caused by the desiccation of the surface of the cheese.

(2) Firm sound rind. Possessing a firmness and thickness (not easily dented or damaged) consistent with the size of the cheese and which is dry, smooth, and closely knit, sufficient to protect the interior quality from external defects; free from checks, cracks, breaks or soft spots.

(3) Burst or torn bandage. A severance of the bandage usually occurring at the side seam or is otherwise snagged or broken.

(4) Wrapper or covering. Transparent or opaque material (plastic film type or foil) next to the surface of the cheese, used as an enclosure or covering of the cheese.

(5) Adequately and securely enveloped. Wrapper or covering properly sealed, and entirely enclosing the cheese, with sufficient adherence for ample protection and prevention of mold.

(6) Smooth bright surface. Clean, glossy surface.

(7) Soiled surface. Milkstone, rust spots or other discoloration on the surface of the cheese.

(8) Smooth surface. Not rough or uneven.

(9) Surface mold. Mold on the exterior of the cheese.

(10) Mold under wrapper or covering. Mold spots or areas that have formed under the wrapper or on the cheese.

(11) Rough surface. Lacks smoothness.

(12) Bandage evenly placed. Overlapping the edges evenly about one inch.

(13) Irregular bandaging. Bandage improperly placed in the hoop resulting in too much bandage on one end and insufficient on the other causing overlapping; wrinkled and loose fitting.

(14) Lopsided. One side of the cheese is higher than the other side.

(15) High edge. A rim or ridge on the follower side of the cheese, which is raised in varying degrees. In extreme cases it may bend over.

(16) Cracks in the rind. Openings or breaks in the rind.

(17) Checked rind. Numerous small cracks or breaks in the rind, sometimes following the outline of curd particles sometimes referred to as "curd openings."

(18) Soft spots. Soft to the touch and the spots are usually faded and moist.

(19) Huffed cheese. Swollen because of gas fermentation. The cheese becomes rounded or oval in shape instead of being flat.

(20) Weak rind. Thin and possessing little or no resistance to pressure.

(21) Sour rind. A fermented rind condition, usually confined to the faces of the cheese.

(22) Wet rind. A wet rind is one in which the moisture adheres to the surface of the rind and which may or may not soften the rind or cause discoloration.

(23) Rind rot. Soft spots on the rind that have become discolored and have decayed or decomposed.

(f) Melt.

(1) Blistering. Bubbled or bulging.

(2) Burning. Evident by light brown to black coloration after cooking.

(3) Free oil. Readily visible oil or melted grease.

(4) Firm string. Solid and thick when stretched into a string shape.

(g) Processing facility. Seal of Quality cheese manufacturing and packaging is restricted to those facilities in compliance with Agriculture and Markets Law, article 4 or 12-A and these facilities must maintain a satisfactory inspection record.

(h) Packing. All packages are subject to approval by the Department of Agriculture and Markets. Package approval shall be based upon the ability of the package to maintain the quality standards and integrity of the product.

(i) Markings. Each package of mozzarella cheese packaged and offered for sale under the Seal of Quality program shall have affixed the official seal designation.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New York may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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