Introduction and Objectives

Cheese and lard are common and regularly used food products. The manufacture of packaged cheese and lard requires the products to be cut into regularly sized pieces. There is little research done into what affects the force or energy used in cutting such materials. In terms of blade geometry, product temperature, and cutting speed, no best practice is known for cutting the products. Little is known on the mechanics of cutting cheese with blades. The aim of this research project is to use empirical testing, and research texts to investigate trends in force when cutting cheese and lard, and to evaluate differences in this behaviour between different kinds of product.