MILK & DAIRY PRODUCTS
Milk
All milk (where the only ingredient is milk) is kosher in Western Australia.
Cheese
All cheeses require kashrut certification, including hard cheeses (Swiss, cheddar, etc.) and soft cheeses (cottage, farmer, pot, and cream cheese). Rennet, processed from the stomachs of unweaned calves, is used in the production of cheese as a curdling and coagulating ingredient, and is also used in the production of sour cream, buttermilk, and some varieties of yogurt and yogurt-type desserts. The issue of a non-kosher coagulant renders the product non-kosher.
Cheese and dairy products made under kashrut supervision are processed with kosher approved animal or microbial rennet. Kosher animal rennet is derived from the stomachs of kosher slaughtered calves and is specially prepared for use in kosher cheese production. Microbial rennet is derived solely from vegetable and plant sources and is produced under the supervision of a kashrut authority.
Meat and Milk in the Kosher Kitchen
The Torah forbids cooking meat and milk together in any form, eating such cooked products, or deriving benefit from them. As a safeguard, the Rabbis extended this prohibition to disallow the eating of meat and dairy products at the same meal or preparing them on the same utensils. One must wait up to six hours after eating meat products before any dairy products may be eaten. However, meat may be eaten following dairy products with the one exception of hard cheese (6 months old or more), which also requires a six hour interval. Prior to eating meat after dairy, one must eat a solid food and the mouth must be rinsed.
Utensils:
The kosher kitchen must have two separate sets of utensils, one for meat and poultry and the other for dairy foods. There must be separate, distinct sets of pots, pans, plates and silverware.
Washing Dishes:
In a sink used for both meat and milk dishes and products, dishes and utensils must be placed or washed on a rack. Separate racks are to be used for meat and dairy use.