METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING BLOCKS OF NATURAL CHEESE FROM CHEESE CURD

摘要

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURECrumbled cheese curd is fed into the top of a hollowperforated column in a chamber maintained at a sub-atmosphericpressure so as to form in the column a pillar of curd devoidof air pockets, the curd in the lower portion of the pillar beingcompressed by the weight of superimposed curd to press out wheytherefrom and consolidate the curd, the whey passing through theperforations in the wall of the column, and the pillar of curdis repeatedly lowered, the bottom end of the pillar severed toform a block of cheese, and fresh curd added to the top ofthe pillar. During the lowering of the pillar of curd, the gaseouspressure in the space between the column and the wall of the chamberis increased so as to effect a transverse compression of the pillarof curd and thereby reduce the frictional sliding resistancebetween the pillar of curd and the column.