Buffalo mozzarella farms used to produce the PDO buffalo mozzarella DOP. On 19 April, China definitively removed the ban on mozzarella, originally activated on 28 March 2008, and tests held in December 2013 in Germany on behalf of four Italian consumer associations have highlighted dioxin and heavy metal levels at the lowest of five times at most permitted by law. To produce of cheese, a cheese maker requires of cow milk but only of buffalo milk. Producing 1 kg of butter requires of cow milk but only of buffalo milk. The steps required to produce buffalo mozzarella are: The digestive system of
Cheese milk sugars into lactic acid, then the addition of rennet completes the curdling. Vegetarian alternatives to rennet are available; most are produced by fermentation of the fungus "Mucor miehei", but others have been extracted from various species of the "Cynara" thistle family. Cheesemakers near a dairy region may benefit from fresher, lower-priced milk, and lower shipping costs. Cheese is valued for its portability, long life, and high content of fat, protein, calcium, and phosphorus. Cheese is more compact and has a longer shelf life than milk, although how long a cheese will keep depends on the type of cheese; labels