Italian researchers collected 118 authentic cheese samples of four PDO cheeses (Taleggio PDO, Asiago PDO, Pecorino Toscano PDO, and Provolone Valpadana PDO) from 5 regions over a 3 year period. They analysed the dataset for five isotopic parameters: δ13C and δ15N on the casein fraction and on whole cheese; δ13C on the fat fraction of the cheese, and taking into account the variables of year, season, location and altitude, the characteristic isotopic ratios of each cheese are stable within a narrow range.
After applying chemometric analyses of principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares regression-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA), the data showed a good separation between cheese classes, particularly for the Pecorino Toscano cheese type. The results indicate the usefulness of these isotopic indicators as markers of authenticity for these PDO Italian cheeses.
Read the abstract at: Authenticity of Italian PDO cheeses
