3,600-year-old cheese 'reveals' secrets of ancient food preparation

These pieces of cheese were placed around the heads and necks of the mummies, possibly as a reserve for the "afterlife".

A decade after discovering intact mummies in the Taklamakan Desert, researchers have successfully analyzed DNA from this ancient cheese. It is the oldest cheese ever found in the archaeological record.

A mummy from the Xiaohe cemetery in the arid Tarim Basin, in China's Xinjiang region, was seen with kefir cheese scattered around its neck.

The analysis revealed that the people of the time, who belonged to the Xiaohe culture , knew how to make cheese using bacteria to improve food. The finding also provides important information about how bacteria play a role in tracking the spread of cultural influences over time.

According to Professor Christina Warinner from Harvard University, the research published in the journal Cell opens a new door for studies of ancient DNA, with modern technology that scientists today can do, something that was previously unimaginable.

Today, fermented foods are mostly made from a small number of commercially grown bacteria and yeasts in the lab, but little is known about the traditional bacteria that humans used in the past to make important foods such as bread, cheese, beer and wine, Warinner explains.

A team led by Chinese paleontologist Qiaomei Fu analyzed the DNA from the cheese and determined that it contained goat and cattle DNA. They also discovered that kefir bacteria, a popular cheese to this day, was present in the cheese 3,600 years ago.

Researchers have collected animal and bacterial DNA from kefir cheese found on mummies in the Tarim Basin. (Source: CNN)

The Xiaohe cemetery , where the mummies were found, has baffled scientists with the unique combination of cultural and genetic traits of its inhabitants. Despite living genetically isolated, these people adopted new ideas and technologies from other civilizations.

Research also shows that, unlike Middle Eastern and Greek cheesemaking methods, the Xiaohe do not mix milk from different animals when making kefir.

The findings help scientists better understand how probiotics – a type of beneficial bacteria – have evolved over thousands of years. These studies not only shed light on ancient food preparation, but also provide insight into humans' interactions with the microbial world.

Ultimately, scientists believe that cheese and dairy products have played an important role in life for thousands of years and continue to be an essential part of culture and food today.