engleski

Mineral value of Croatian artisanal hard sheep cheeses in terms of geographical indication

The objective of the present study was to estimate concentrations of Ca, P, K, Mg, Mn, Zn, Cu and Fe in artisanal hard cheeses made from raw sheep milk in different Mediterranean areas in Croatia. In order to study both the nutritive value and geographical indication, forty two mature cheeses from the Istrian peninsula (I), the island of Pag (P) and Dalmatian islands (D) were examined. The measured concentrations of the macrominerals (Ca, P, K, Mg) and trace elements (Mn, Fe, Zn, Cu) in all cheeses was high and within the ranges according to the literature data. A significant difference between areas was found only for K, Fe, and Zn concentrations while the concentration of other minerals was area independent. The lowest concentration of K, Fe and Zn was estimated in Istrian cheeses. Therefore, in addition to K, both Zn and Fe may be considered useful criteria for distinguishing artisanal cheeses according to geographical indication. Nutritionally, however, the main value of these artisanal cheeses appears to be their rather high concentration of Zn (I) = 3.492, (P) = 3.900 and (D) = 4.0166 mg/100g cheese, respectively.

Hard sheep cheeses; mineral content; Croatia

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