ANLAEG TIL FREMSTILLING AF OSTEMASSE

Cheese curd is produced by coagulating a milk product during its passage through a long coagulator tube under renneting conditions giving a relatively slow coagulation course. The milk product is renneted in-line and the renneted mixture is fed periodically to the inlet end of the coagulator tube. The feeding periods are separated by stand still periods, the feeding period duration being selected so that there is substantially no coagulation of the mixture introduced until the next stand still period, and the duration of the stand still periods being selected so that the mixture after one stand still period in the coagulator tube forms a sufficiently firm coagulum to be transported as a continuous plug by feeding new mixture to the tube during a subsequent feeding period. The speed of feeding mixture into the coagulator tube and the length of the coagulator tube are adjusted so that the residence time in the coagulator tube comprises at least one feeding period and one stand still period. A device for carrying out the invention comprises a long tube of constant cross-section having a length/ diameter ratio greater than 500, and an envelope enclosing the tube for maintaining the temperature of the mixture in the tube substantially constant.