Chr. Hansen, Kenyan enterprise develop camel cheese recipes

In 2012, Chr. Hansen, together with Oleleshwa Enterprises Ltd, initiated a CSR project to improve the living conditions of small-scale camel owners, especially those in the arid regions of Northern Africa.  It involved teaching them how to produce their own camel cheese. The ingredients company provided them with the enzyme solution, FAR-M^?.

Production of camel cheese will allow producers to preserve camel milk from the wet season, when volumes are higher than consumption, to the dry seasons, where demand is much higher than milk available. Moreover, production of cheese will enable camel owners to develop a sustainable camel cheese market and distribution chain.

One year later, the project has been a successful exercise for all involved and has yielded several cheese recipes. Director of Oleleshwa, Anne Bruntse worked with Chr. Hansen and camel owners on this project. She developed a manual with recipes for a variety of cheeses including a soft ripened cheese called “Camelbert”- all of them based on camel milk.

“Developing this manual has been a very educational and enjoyable exercise. We have learnt many new facts about the processing opportunities of camel milk. For instance the fact that just like the camel prefers hot weather, so does its milk work best with heat tolerant (thermophilic) cultures and hot processing temperatures,” Ms Bruntse said.  “We also found ways to incorporate local traditional technology in the cheese making process in pastoral areas where cooling facilities are not available – something that put a big proud smile on the faces of the pastoralists so far trained. Thus the recipes are a tribute and further development to all the efforts of the good people who have worked generations to find out what works in camel milk processing – both pastoralists and Chr. Hansen. However there is still a lot more to learn and it is our hope that others will also feel free to share recipes and experiences in this field. A big thank you to all our partners and collaborators so far,” she said.

“We are really satisfied with the outcome of this project,” said Rolando Saltini, global market manager Cheese, Chr. Hansen. “We expect that these recipes will help the rural camel communities in developing a sustainable camel dairy industry. The camel cheese project builds on insights from projects in Brazil, Ecuador and other countries, where Chr. Hansen’s natural ingredient solutions are helping small-scale milk producers make cheese that they can trade, thereby increasing their income and improving their living conditions.”

The cheese production steps have been collected in the short, simple and illustrated Camel Cheese Manual. NEW BALANCE