Free fatty acids milk products

The restricted shelf life of liquid milk continues to be a problem that is often more influenced by the type of milk being sold rather than the pasteurisation technique. The shelf life of processed milk is determined primarily by the quality of the raw milk from the dairy herd. Increasing cell counts in the milk and a higher concentration of free fatty acids, contribute to rancidity in both liquid milk and milk products. Janzen (1972) reported that the 0-14 day shelf life of pasteurised milk is influenced by the somatic cell concentration in the raw milk and found that after 14 days any observed changes in the flavour and stability of the milk were attributable to microbial activity during storage. 

The data in Table 4.2 are from analyses of pooled milk. As mentioned, TGs account for about 98% of the lipids the DGs, MGs, and free fatty acids (FFA) are mostly products of lipolysis, and the cholesterol and phospholipids are cellular membrane material which accompanies the fat globule during extrusion from the secreting cell. 

Market milk and some products manufactured from milk sometimes possess a flavor described as rancid . This term, as used in the dairy industry, denotes implicitly the flavor due to the accumulation of the proper concentrations and types of free fatty acids hydrolytically cleaved from milk fat under the catalytic influence of the lipases normally present in milk. 

Kuzdzal-Savoie, S. 1980. Flavour impairment of milk and milk products due to lipolysis. VII. Determination of free fatty acids in milk and milk products. Int. Dairy Fed. Bull. 118, pp. 53-66. 

In milk, the important interfaces are those between the liquid product and air and between the milk plasma and the fat globules contained therein. Studies of the surface tension (liquid/air) have been made to ascertain the relative effectiveness of the milk components as depressants to follow changes in surface-active components as a result of processing to follow the release of free fatty acids during lipolysis and to attempt to explain the foaming phenomenon so characteristic of milk. Interfacial tensions between milk fat and solutions of milk components have been measured in studies of the stabilization of fat globules in natural and processed milks. 

Full fat milk contains about 3% fat and triacylglycerols account for about 95% of the lipid fraction. Other components of the lipid fraction are diacylglycerols, cholesterol, phospholipids, and free fatty acids. The lipid structures contain many fatty acids from all major classes, that is, saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids (Haug et al., 2007). More than 60% of the fatty acids in cow s milk and consequently in dairy products are saturated, including shorter and medium... 

IDF (1991). Determination of Free Fatty Acids in Milk and Milk Products (Standard 265). International Dairy Federation, Brussels. 

Lipolysis, the enzymic hydrolysis of milk lipids to free fatty acids and partial glycerides, is a constant concern to the dairy industry because of the detrimental effects it can have on the flavor and other properties of milk and milk products. However, free fatty acids also contribute to the desirable flavor of milk and milk products when present at low concentrations and, in some cheeses, when present at high concentrations. 

Hydrolytic rancidity results from the hydrolytic degradation of milk lipids. The hydrolysis is catalyzed by lipases and produces free fatty acids (FFAs), some of which have a low flavor threshold and can cause unpleasant flavors in milk and milk products. These flavors are variously described as rancid, butyric, bitter, unclean, soapy or astringent. The lipases involved are of two types indigenous milk enzyme(s) and enzymes of microbial origin. 

Collomb, M., Spahni, M. 1995. Review of methods used for determination of free fatty acids in milk and milk products. Lebensm. Wiss. Technol. 28, 355-379. 

O Brien, B., O Callaghan, E., Connolly, B., Fleming, M. 1996. Free fatty acid levels in milk and dairy products. Farm Food 6, 8-9. 

Milk fat contains a number of different lipids, but is predominately made up of triacylglycerols (TAG) (98%). The remaining lipids are diacylglycerols (DAG), monoacylglycerols (MAG), phospholipids, free fatty acids (FFA) and sterols. Milk fat contains over 250 different fatty acids, but 15 of these make up approximately 95% of the total (Banks, 1991) the most important are shown in Table 19.1. The unique aspect of bovine, ovine and caprine milk fat, in comparison to vegetable oils, is the presence of high levels of short-chain volatile FFAs (SCFFA), which have a major impact on the flavor/aroma of dairy products. Most cheeses are produced from either bovine, ovine or caprine milk and the differences of their FFA profile are responsible for the characteristic flavor of cheeses produced from such milks (Ha and Lindsay, 1991). 

Elliott, J.M., de Haan, B., Parkin, K.L. 1989. An improved liquid chromatographic method for the quantitative determination of free fatty acids in milk products. J. Dairy Sci. 72, 2478-2482. 

Lipolytic rancidity is normally enzymatic, the enzymes responsible usually coming from bacteria or moulds. The effect of lipolytic rancidity is that the level of free fatty acid rises. The effect of this on the product depends very much upon the nature of the free fatty acid liberated. Low levels of free butyric acid from milk fat tend to enhance a toffee by giving it a more buttery flavour, whereas lipolysis of a lauric fat such as HPKO gives free lauric acid, which is an ingredient of, and tastes of, soap. This effect is very unpleasant. 

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