Manual of Naval Preventive Medicine
Chapter 1: Food Service Sanitation
Section IV: Inspection of Food Items

1-30. Inspection of Butter, Cheese, and Eggs.

Department of the Navy
Bureau of Medicine and Surgery

1. Butter, cheese, and eggs spoil quickly under improper storage conditions. The method of handling and the storage temperatures must be correct. It is necessary that these products be checked carefully upon delivery and frequently thereafter until consumed.

a. Butter. Butter should be received in clean, unbroken cases. For quality, it is best to taste samples for sweetness and freshness. The color should be uniform and the texture firm. Specks or foreign substances should not be present.

b. Cheese. The rind color, flavor and texture of cheese should be checked. Cheese may be received in either natural or processed form. The rind should be clean and free from mold or wrinkles. The color should be evenly distributed through good cheddar cheese. This can be determined by holding a thin slice in front of a light. The flavor of good cheese is "clean and nutty" and the texture compact and solid. The surface of the cheese should not contain breaks or holes. Moldy cheese must not be sold or served unless it is reconditioned by removing the mold. Cheese is reconditioned by:

(1) If the cheese has been held at 40 degrees F, a 1/2 inch layer is removed and the moldy portions are discarded;

(2) The cutting must be performed so that mold contamination of the new surfaces is prevented, and

(3) Cheese with high moisture content (cream and cottage) or with mold filaments which deeply penetrate the surfaces, and cheese too small to be reconditioned must be discarded.

(4) All cheese procured for use by the Navy and Marine Corps will be manufactured and labeled as required by 21 CFR 133.

c. Eggs. Various types of eggs, including fresh frozen, and dehydrated are procured to meet all kinds of conditions, temperatures, and uses. Fresh eggs, not over 30 days old, which have been held at a temperature of 32 degrees F, in a dry, well ventilated place, are preferred. Eggs stored at room temperature or allowed to remain at room temperature rapidly lose their quality. Fresh processed eggs have been preserved by the application of a protective covering such as oil to the shell surfaces. This treatment helps retard shrinkage due to evaporation and also destroys molds and bacteria, thereby prolonging the storage life of the eggs. Protective coverings must be a substance acceptable to the FDA. Processed eggs must also be stored in a cool 32 degrees F, dry, well ventilated area. Both dehydrated eggs and frozen eggs which must be thawed before use are used for making scrambled eggs omelets and for baking purposes. All egg products other than fresh or fresh processed eggs will be manufactured and labeled as required by 21 CFR 160. The products will be pasteurized or otherwise treated to destroy all viable Salmonella microorganisms. Due to the Salmonella enteritidis problem with eggs, FDA has now designated shell eggs as a potentially hazardous food (see Paragraph 1-3.15. and 1-39.1.a.)