Portable Cheese Making Training Module

During the design phase, the concerns included the ability to complete a facility and conduct the training within the budget. The County Office of General Services assured that all purchasing was free and open to competition and audited. The equipment and construction needed prior approval and the design recommendations of a cheesemaker.

It was important that this project set an example by selecting and designing the best equipment for farmstead cheesemaking. The capacity and type of storage and handling equipment needed to be optimum for the cheeses that were to be produced.

INSTRUCTORS: The majority of the instruction and design assistance came from Peter Dixon, dairy foods consultant from Putney, Vermont. He continues to be one of the most important assets to the project as it evolves into the next phase with the SARE application for “Cheesemaking Training for Farmers and Extension.”

Kathy Biss, a formally educated cheese maker from Scotland, has introduced many unique cheeses and processes in here annual instructional sessions. Her compliment was that the cheesemobile was “a great idea and it provides real experience.”

Margaret Morris of Glengarry Cheesemaking was the last instructor secured for the project to provide another perspective and instruction in making additional products.

TRAILER: The total weight of the equipment – filled with milk and cheese was calculated, we ordered a 200 lb / square foot capacity, (2” x 6” steel Joists – 16” OC.).

Other specifications included a 50 amp service panel, recessed lighting, washable wall and ceilings, 2 axels, one keyed entry door and a set of two 32” latch doors for equipment.
FLOOR: Materials considered for the floor surface ranged from epoxy coated wood to Stainless Steel diamond plate, acrylic membrane, and even Rhino liner. The final choice was to use pitched concrete for a floor; it was affordable, practical, but heavy.

BOILER: First the decision to use a hot water boiler instead of steam, because we were doing the plumbing, and it is easier to work with hot water. Secondly the size of the boiler was caculated: to heat 200 gallons of milk and 150 gallons of hot water, (approximately 3000 lbs. of liquid) to be heated approximately 100 degrees in one hour requires 300,000 BTUs. We added 10% for error and 10% for wash-up water capacity and arrived at a 375,000 BTU Boiler which works very well. It is easy for a farmer to service and maintain but is much heavier than the engineer’s recommendation of an on-demand propane hot water heater which also requires no chimney.

COOLER: The standard cooler units that are available would utilize high velocity fans for the evaporator blowers. These air speeds will dry out the cheese too much and crack the rind. We were well advised to special order an 1,100 cubic feet per minute (cfm) unit instead of using the normal 1,600 cfm fans. Where necessary in the trailer, foam insulation was installed for a total R value of 30; this was covered with Fiberglas board.

VAT: The single most important and expensive item in the project became the pasteurizer. The use of one unit for both pasteurizing and cheesemaking saves equipment costs and conserves space. This idea was first implemented with the retro-fitting of an ice bank milk tank into the Duo-Vat, which is accepted as a pasteurizer in many States.

New York State will no longer accept the use of a Duo Vat because of the possibility of cold corners (more than 1 degree F variation) during pasteurizing. The demand for a unit that could be sold in all 50 states for farmstead cheesemaking convinced Tank Specialties, a Division of Stebbins Engineering, to design and build the first ever 3-A Combination Vat for use in this project. We have continued to collaborate to improve on this central piece of equipment; this important innovation will benefit small farmers around the World as Stebbins has plants in Queensland, Johannesburg and London.

STEAM GENERATOR: When using hot water for pasteurizing, a separate source of steam must be made to heat the airspace above the milk. We used a propane burner to heat a pressure cooker that supplies steam through a stainless hose, into the pasteurizer.

AIR HANDLER: It is required that the air be changed 6-10 times per hour in the “make room” to remove humidity. This air must be filtered as it typically comes in from a barnyard environment. Although not strictly required, we decided to install a HEPA Filtration unit to eliminate dust, odors, and bacteria. The 2,000 cubic feet of air in the make room space is changed 9 times per hour with a 300 cfm Lifebreath HEPA Filtration unit and Lifebreath heat exchanger. The farmers and regulators are satisfied with this system, and we were granted an open-capping exemption for yogurt primarily because of the performance of the air handler.

CIP: Because of the elevation and proximity of the trailer to the milk room, we were able to install two 1- ½ inch stainless milk pipe lines with a 1% pitch back towards the barn and thus they can be cleaned from the CIP in the milk room.

UV WATER TREATMENT: To avoid the constant threat of contamination from the water supply, a 110 Volt UV water treatment unit was installed in the ¾ inch supply line.

MILK HANDLING REGULATIONS
Once each year, the state requires a training class for the person responsible for the pasteurization of the milk--the licensed, Processing Plant Superintendent (PPS). Each batch of milk is required to be checked with an antibiotic test kits; this is a simple, inexpensive procedure that must be performed.

The measuring stick used to gauge the milk used in each batch must be calibrated and approved by the Ag & Markets, weights and measures person.
The milk Dealer’s License Application has an initial license fee of $100.

The farmers needs to apply to the Milk Market administrator to be designated as a produce-handler. The Dairy Promotion assessments bust be paid directly by the farmer each month - $0.10 / cwt State and $0.05 / cwt National Dairy Promotion order.

NOTE: These reports, applications and licenses are required, but are not tedious for the farmer. It is the pre-conceived hassle of these regulations that stop many farmers from proceeding; once they are understood, it becomes routine.

WASTE MANAGEMENT: Both the floor water and whey are drained by gravity to the manure spreader for field application. The nutrient impact of whey from each 200 gallon batch of cheese is 1.7 cow equivalent / week; 2 batches = 3.4 cow equivalents, etc.

MARKETING: Fresh cheeses needed a separate storage from the raw-milk aged cheeses so a 6’ free-standing, cooler unit was installed in the make room for pasteurized products.

A market-driven instruction curriculum was designed around what would sell well and combined with what would create an immediate cash flow. One instructor, Kathy Biss, was actually taken through the Greenmarket and Murray’s Cheeses in Manhattan. It was vital that the best product be produced with the resources available, and that this product be in demand. A renowned chef, Colin Aleveras, who uses only American Cheeses at Manhattan’s “Tasting Room,” advised the farmers even before the unit was operational.