Composition and variability of milk

In addition to the principal constituents listed in Table 1.1, milk contains several hundred minor constituents, many of which, e.g. vitamins, metal ions and flavour compounds, have a major impact on the nutritional, technological and sensoric properties of milk and dairy products. Many of these effects will be discussed in subsequent chapters. 

Milk is a very variable biological fluid. In addition to interspecies differences (Table 1.1), the milk of any particular species varies with the individuality of the animal, the breed (in the case of commercial dairying species), health (mastitis and other diseases), nutritional status, stage of lactation, age, interval between milkings, etc. In a bulked factory milk supply, variability due to many of these factors is evened out, but some variability will persist and will be quite large in situations where milk 

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