The making of cheese depends on the contribution of myriad microbial actors. Both yeast and bacteria are components of the starter cultures that help turn milk into solids, and those solids into cheeses with distinctive aromas, flavors and textures that are hard to resist. The interplay of these species, while understood in a basic sense, is now receiving renewed scientific scrutiny and appreciation in the United States.

Unlike their peers in Europe, who benefit from centuries of tradition and from government support for research, American farmstead cheese makers have typically gone it alone. Starter cultures are a particularly vexing ingredient. The only three domestic suppliers, including DuPont and Cargill, are multinational corporations better known for chemicals, which has limited the number of available cultures and caused discomfort in a field that strives for individuality.

But now several small cheese producers are working with scientists to develop their own starters and use microbiology to create better cheeses.

Murray’s Cheese is working with Rockefeller University to learn more about the microflora in its cheese caves in Long Island City, Queens. Uplands Cheese Company is working with the Center for Dairy Research at the University of Wisconsin to create a new soft cheese, its first in seven years.