Milk

Composition of milk

• Water

    Water is a median in which all the other components of milk are dissolved or suspended. Water content varies from 83-88% milk of different species of cow and buffalo. A small percentage of water in milk is hydrated to the lactose and salt while some portion is bounded with proteins.

• Fat

  Milk fat impacts richens and smoothness to fat containing dairy products. Fat is the most variable component of milk it occurs as microscopic globular emulsion of liquid fat in an aqueous face of milk plasma. The fat globules are stabilized by a very tin membrane. The membrane consists of proteins, lipids, lipoproteins, phospholipids, serbocytes, nucleic acids, enzymes, trace elements and bound water. The membrane is important in keeping fat from separately as free oil when it subjected to physical treatment during handling or processing of milk. It also protects milk lipids against the action of enzyme in development of rancidity.

• Cholesterol

  The cholesterol content of milk is affected by the species, breed stage of lactation and season of the year. It is generally lowest at the beginning of the lactation period, progressively rises to reach the highest level towards the end.

• Proteins

  Casein, the principle milk protein means 80% of total protein content and remaining 20% as whey proteins. Casein display a designative structure as well as physical, biological and nutritional properties, heat has no effect on casein molecules since they exist naturally in an open and extend state at higher temperature. However heating of milk at elevated temperature for long time may results in hydrolytic cleavage of peptide and phosphate bond, which affects the stability of complex contributing to coagulation of milk.

• Whey Protein

  Whey protein consists of beta lacto globulin and Alfa lactalbumin bobbing serum albumin, immunoglobulin, lactoferin, proteospecton, serumtransferin, glycoprotein and enzymes.