Ideal conditions in the workshops

OAO Slutsk Cheese-Making Plant is a large enterprise comprising five separate production sites and five branches in various cities across Minsk Oblast. We went to Slutsk.

Let’s note right away: getting into the plant’s production facilities isn’t easy due to restricted access. As journalists, we had to confirm our health status by signing a form, and security personnel carefully checked our documents. The company monitors the workers’ health extremely strictly: before every shift the supervisor records everyone’s temperature in a special log and confirms the absence of signs of gastrointestinal or pustular diseases. This system does not seem overly strict to us as consumers. Only healthy people can make healthy products.

We sanitize our hands, put on white lab coats, shoe covers, and caps, and the photojournalist even tucks his beard under a special protective cover. Only then do we enter the production areas.

Together with Production Manager Maria Glatenok, we followed the same route that every drop of milk takes at the plant: from the receiving pipe of the milk tanker to the refrigerated truck that transports the finished dairy products to retailers.

Our tour of the facility begins with milk acceptance. We were in luck: a large milk tanker with the Yas Belous brand colors had just pulled up. The striking design catches the eye. The 2020 brand was launched with a legend: Yas Belous made cheese with such a distinctive flavor that gourmets lined up in a queue of connoisseurs and, as a mark of distinction, wore a single white mustache, imitating the master. The hero’s image is a stroke of genius by the marketers, as it reflects the very essence of Slutsk, a city where men have long practiced a complex craft — weaving the famous Slutsk sashes. Elements of their ornamentation can also be seen in the packaging design.

From the second floor the acceptance area is visible in detail. A chemical and bacteriological lab technician carefully takes a milk sample. From this point on, the process begins: thanks to modern rapid tests and the lab technicians’ high level of expertise, the milk undergoes rigorous testing to ensure it meets national standards.

If all required quality and safety standards are met, the «white gold» moves on through the production chain. The plant has its own agricultural enterprises, and all external suppliers have long been vetted for reliability. Every batch of milk is guaranteed to meet standards, eliminating the very possibility of a return.

The next stop on the route is the whole milk products workshop. Above our heads is a veritable maze of pipes through which the milk flows. All the equipment is state-of-the-art. It was installed in 2023.

Lyudmila Butushina, Manager of the Whole Milk Products Workshop, has been working here since 1998 and has managed the workshop since 2011.

«Conditions in the workshops are ideal now,» said Lyudmila Butushina. «The difference is colossal in comparison to what we had when I started working here almost 28 years ago.» Back then, manual labor was the norm, and productivity was low. Nowadays working here is a pleasure.

Take, for example, the separation, standardization, and pasteurization line: all it takes is the push of a single button to start this highly complex process. Before separation, the milk undergoes a multi-stage purification process to remove even the tiniest mechanical impurities. Then the automated system separates the flow into cream and skim milk, standardizes the product with flawless precision to the specified fat content, and sends it for heat treatment.

The packaging processes are also automated. The production lines are completely sealed off from the outside environment, the equipment is continuously sanitized, and human involvement is minimal.

Sour cream — a finicky product

The process of making sour cream, cottage cheese, and regular cheese is so complex that it’s impossible to describe it in a single article. Our tour guides are true masters of their craft and could talk about it endlessly: their words are so full of passion for their work and professional nuances that we’ve significantly expanded our vocabulary with new terminology.

It would seem that even a familiar product like sour cream is created here as a result of intricate work that is done with utmost precision. The 45-day shelf life is by no means a marketing ploy.

«We’ve achieved these results thanks to fully automated processes and state-of-the-art equipment,» Maria Glatenok proudly emphasized.

Sour cream is produced at the plant according to high standards: the milk undergoes sequential purification, separation, bacterial centrifugation, and pasteurization. Each stage serves a specific purpose: to remove unwanted microorganisms, preserve beneficial properties, and ensure safety.

«Sour cream is a finicky product that requires a great deal of attention,» emphasized Lyudmila Butushina. «Starting with the raw materials, pasteurization, temperature, inoculation, fermentation, cooling stages, packaging, and ripening.»

At each stage it’s essential to strictly adhere to protocols and maintain cleanliness. Sterility here is as critical as in an operating room. Even the slightest external interference can disrupt the delicate balance of the microflora.

The master craftsmen pay special attention to the starter cultures. They’re stored in a separate room and literally cherished. The composition of the starter cultures is a trade secret: it includes carefully selected strains, and the plant’s employees are in no hurry to share the recipe.

«Selecting strains is painstaking work for the process engineers, since every manufacturer tailors them to their own raw materials,» admitted Maria Glatenok.

At the same time, the taste of sour cream is a matter not only of technology but also of consumer preferences. For example, Belarusians most often choose sour cream with a 20% fat content: it strikes the perfect balance between creaminess and texture. The 26% variety is also popular. It is the one «thick enough to stand a spoon upright». The 15% and 20% varieties are exported: for example, the version with a more pronounced tang is shipped to Russia.

«We try to meet all our customers’ wishes. We listen to them and take their feedback into account,» company representatives explained.

At present the plant produces a line of sour cream with fat contents of 15%, 20%, and 26% — different consistencies, but all meeting the same high quality standard. And there’s packaging to suit every taste: small and large cups as well as 380-gram pouches.

One of the most striking moments in the production process is filling the cups with the finished sour cream. The machine dispenses the product in several streams, and for a split second, a pattern forms on its surface that looks remarkably like a flower.

Next comes labeling: the production date and batch number are applied to every package. And before heading to stores, the sour cream undergoes one more check to ensure it meets all standard requirements across the board: from physical and chemical properties to organoleptic characteristics.

As the company emphasizes, it’s not enough to simply make high-quality products. It’s also important to deliver them in top condition. Smart devices monitor the logistics process, recording the temperature throughout the entire journey from the warehouse to retail locations.

But that’s not the end of the quality control process. Reference samples from every batch are stored in a separate refrigerator until the end of the shelf life. If any questions about quality arise, a special commission will open that specific package and conduct a full analysis. Checks are also performed at the end of the shelf life: they evaluate how the product has held up, whether its properties have changed, and measure its physical and chemical parameters. One of the key indicators is the number of lactic acid bacteria: by the end of the shelf life, there must be at least 1×10⁷ CFU/g (colony-forming units per gram of product). This guarantees that the sour cream remains alive and beneficial.

Safety indicators

The plant’s laboratory was also included in the tour. It holds an accreditation certificate confirming its authority to conduct a wide range of tests from physicochemical and microbiological ones to organoleptic and safety indicators. For example, the raw materials are tested for acidity, the mass fraction of protein and nonfat solids in milk, density, and residual levels of antibiotics and veterinary drugs. The specialists are equipped with water baths, drying ovens, and other modern equipment, including a MilkoScan milk analyzer, which determines the parameters necessary for process control in a matter of minutes.

To discern the difference between simply good sour cream and truly exceptional sour cream, you need someone with impeccable taste. Slutsk Cheese-Making Plant has such a professional: the chemical engineer and expert taster Natalya Shklyarevskaya. Her taste buds are just as precise and important a quality control tool as modern laboratory equipment. Natalya Shklyarevskaya has possessed a unique natural gift for unerringly identifying products by their smell and taste since childhood. Later on this talent was complemented by professional training at the All-Russian Research Institute of Butter and Cheese Making. The specialist evaluates five basic tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami — that distinctive, deep flavor found in high-protein foods. This refined sensitivity allows her to detect the slightest deviations from the ideal and ensures that only flawless products reach customers’ tables.

«Everything made at Slutsk Cheese-Making Plant passes through my hands,» smiled Natalya Shklyarevskaya. «When the cheese is ready, we taste it together with the workshop manager, the process engineer, and the chemical engineer. Only then do we make a decision: whether to release it for sale or send it back for further processing. But I’m confident in the result: all our products are of high and consistent quality.»

Manufacturing process highlights

Slutsk Cheese-Making Plant has the capacity to process up to 3,600 tonnes of raw milk per day. It makes a wide range of dairy products: over 1,200 items, including cheeses, butter, ice cream, and more. Under the brand names Yas Belous, Complimilk, Zdravushka, Nezhnaya Koroleva, Kletskaya Krynachka, and the healthy eating line #Mozhno, many Belarusians already have their favorites. But the masters do not rest on their laurels: they continue searching for new recipes, transforming milk into culinary discoveries and expanding the range of flavors.

One of this year’s new products is Montasio cheese, which is set to hit the shelves as early as September.

«What makes it special is the pink Himalayan salt and the multiple treatments with honey: thanks to the variety of nectars used, every cheese develops its own distinct flavor note — floral, watermelon, or melon. At the same time, the firm texture remains consistent,» assured Yelena Grinyuk, Manager of the Cheese-Making Workshop.

The company produces hard and semi-hard cheeses, skim and low-fat varieties as well as a separate premium line.

Among them is Maasdam cheese with its characteristic holes. To create these holes, special conditions must be maintained: a constant temperature of 20C must be kept, and the growth of propionic acid bacteria, which are responsible for the beautiful pattern, must be closely monitored. Once the holes have formed, the cheese is moved to different conditions to lock in the result. Maasdam is one of the most sought-after cheeses on the market.

Yelena Grinyuk emphasized that the aging process for premium cheeses can last from one month to one year, and every stage requires strict adherence to the manufacturing process.

«The launch of any new product is preceded by extensive experimental work and painstaking efforts of a close-knit team. First, we refine the flavor profile on a test batch: we evaluate the organoleptic characteristics and fine-tune the recipe to perfection. We move on to industrial production only after all the nuances have been corrected,» emphasized Kristina Yefimtseva, the plant’s Chief Process Engineer.

It should be noted that quality at the plant is confirmed not only by internal inspections but also by independent contests. For example, sour cream with a fat content of 15% won a gold medal this year at a competition in the city of Uglich organized by the All-Russian Research Institute of Butter and Cheese Making. Almost all of the holding company’s dairy products have received awards and recognition. These include the well-known cheese ice cream, the Torvald extra-hard cheese with ginger, and lactose-free yogurt.

«The plant is open to feedback: you can leave reviews on our Instagram page, and our specialists are always happy to hear from customers. We receive a lot of positive feedback not only from our home region and entire Belarus, but also from Russia,» concluded Kristina Yefimtseva at the end of our tour of the enterprise.

We noticed that at Slutsk Cheese-Making Plant, they speak with genuine pride about their products, about their quality, and their health benefits. After all, every stage is subject to strict quality control and the expertise of master cheesemakers who transform milk into a product you can trust.