Here is the complete truth.
Have you ever been troubled by the urban legend that mice eat Swiss cheese holes when you were a child? Therefore you can rest comfortable now: Modern science says that the cheese on your sandwich has absolutely nothing to do with hungry rats.
What actually causes the holes is as follows.
Swiss Cheese: What Is It?
Many medium-hard cheese kinds that resemble Emmental cheese, which was created in Emmental, Switzerland, are what we mean when we say “Swiss cheese.”
The majority of Swiss cheese blocks contain little holes known as “eyes.” Blind Swiss cheese refers to variants lacking eyes.
Why Are There Holes In Swiss Cheese?
William Clark presented a thorough description of how the carbon dioxide that the bacteria in the milk emitted is what causes Swiss cheese holes in 1917.
For nearly a century, Clark’s hypothesis was taken as gospel truth, but in 2015, a research by the Swiss agricultural institute Agroscope shattered his premise (pun definitely intended).
According to researchers from Agroscope, the eyes are actually brought on by minute pieces of hay that are present in the milk.
How Is Cheese Made From Milk?
This hypothesis explains why, in recent years, the holes have eerily shrunk and occasionally vanished. Hay fragments are prone to get into the milk that has been collected when making cheese in barns using open buckets. According to The Spruce Eats, those little pieces of hay weaken the curd’s structure, allowing gas to develop and produce the holes.
According to Agroscope representative Regis Nyffeler, “it’s the elimination of the customary pail” used during milking that produced the difference, and particles of hay finally formed the holes.
Modern techniques are now typically used to extract milk for cheese production, which is why we no longer notice nearly as many holes in our Swiss.