Characterization of waste skins used in Tulum cheese production

Tulum cheese is a traditional cheese type of Turkey, which the ripening process of the cheese is carried out in sheep and goat skins. Although there are some industrial casings, sheep and goat skins are still the commonly preferred casing materials in traditional Tulum cheese production due to the natural favor and taste that give to the cheese characteristics. The difference of these natural casing materials, such as type, age, gender and sex, gives different tulum cheese quality. But not only a high quality cheese production but also the utilization of the skins used in tulum cheese production is carrying a great importance in environmental point of view. In this study, the utilization possibilities of raw skins that become the waste of the food industry after the tulum cheese production were investigated in terms of physical and chemical properties. For this purpose, forty eight (48) raw skins in different type (goat and sheep skins), age (6 months, 1 and 2 years old) and gender (male and female) were examined. The physical tests such as tensile strength and percentage of extension, double edge tear strength, shrinkage temperature, water vapor and air permeability determination; the chemical analysis such as pH, matters soluble in dichloromethane and Kjeldahl nitrogen analysis were performed to reveal the usage possibilities of these raw materials for the leather or relevant industries.