Dairy product, milk [Credit: AdstockRF]milkAdstockRFmilk and any of the foods made from milk, including butter, cheese, ice cream, yogurt, and condensed and dried milk.

Milk has been used by humans since the beginning of recorded time to provide both fresh and storable nutritious foods. In some countries almost half the milk produced is consumed as fresh pasteurized whole, low-fat, or skim milk. However, most milk is manufactured into more stable dairy products of worldwide commerce, such as butter, cheese, dried milks, ice cream, and condensed milk.

Cow milk (bovine species) is by far the principal type used throughout the world. Other animals utilized for their milk production include buffalo (in India, China, Egypt, and the Philippines), goats (in the Mediterranean countries), reindeer (in northern Europe), and sheep (in southern Europe). This section focuses on the processing of cow milk and milk products unless otherwise noted. In general, the processing technology described for cow milk can be successfully applied to milk obtained from other species.

In the early 1800s the average dairy cow produced less than 1,500 litres of milk annually. With advances in animal nutrition and selective breeding, one cow now produces an average of 6,500 litres of milk a year, with some cows producing up to 10,000 litres. The Holstein-Friesian cow produces the greatest volume, but other breeds such as Ayrshire, Brown Swiss, Guernsey, and Jersey, while producing less milk, are known for supplying milk that contains higher fat, protein, and total solids.

Properties of milk

Nutrient composition

Although milk is a liquid and most often considered a drink, it contains between 12 and 13 percent total solids and perhaps should be regarded as a food. In contrast, many “solid” foods, such as tomatoes, carrots, and lettuce, contain as little as 6 percent solids.

Many factors influence the composition of milk, including breed, genetic constitution of the individual cow, age of the cow, stage of lactation, interval between milkings, and certain disease conditions. Since the last milk drawn at each milking is richest in fat, the completeness of milking also influences a sample. In general, the type of feed only slightly affects the composition of milk, but feed of poor quality or insufficient quantity causes both a low yield and a low percentage of total solids. Current feeding programs utilize computer technology to achieve the greatest efficiency from each animal.

The composition of milk varies among mammals, primarily to meet growth rates of the individual species. The proteins contained within the mother’s milk are the major components contributing to the growth rate of the young animals. Human milk is relatively low in both proteins and minerals compared with that of cows and goats.

Goat milk has about the same nutrient composition as cow milk, but it differs in several characteristics. Goat milk is completely white in colour because all the beta-carotene (ingested from feed) is converted to vitamin A. The fat globules are smaller and therefore remain suspended, so the cream does not rise and mechanical homogenization is unnecessary. Goat milk curd forms into small, light flakes and is more easily digested, much like the curd formed from human milk. It is often prescribed for persons who are allergic to the proteins in cow milk and for some patients afflicted with stomach ulcers.

Sheep milk is rich in nutrients, having 18 percent total solids (5.8 percent protein and 6.5 percent fat). Reindeer milk has the highest level of nutrients, with 36.7 percent total solids (10.3 percent protein and 22 percent fat). These high-fat, high-protein milks are excellent ingredients for cheese and other manufactured dairy products.

The major components of milk are water, fat, protein, carbohydrate (lactose), and minerals (ash). However, there are numerous other highly important micronutrients such as vitamins, essential amino acids, and trace minerals. Indeed, more than 250 chemical compounds have been identified in milk.

Nutrient composition of dairy products (per 100 g)
dairy product energy (kcal) water
protein (g) fat
drate (g)
vitamin A (IU) riboflavin (mg) calcium
fresh milk
   whole 61 88 3.29 3.34 4.66 14 126 0.162 119
   low-fat* 50 89 3.33 1.92 4.80 8 205 0.165 122
   skim* 35 91 3.41 0.18 4.85 2 204 0.140 123
evaporated milk 134 74 6.81 7.56 10.04 29 243 0.316 261
evaporated skim milk* 78 79 7.55 0.20 11.35 4 392 0.309 290
sweetened condensed milk 321 27 7.91 8.70 54.40 34 328 0.416 284
nonfat dry milk* 358 4 35.10 0.72 52.19 18 2,370 1.744 1,231
butter 717 16 0.85 81.11 0.06 219 3,058 0.034 24
ice cream (vanilla) 201 61 3.50 11.00 23.60 44 409 0.240 128
ice milk (vanilla) 139 68 3.80 4.30 22.70 14 165 0.265 139
sherbet (orange) 138 66 1.10 2.00 30.40 5 76 0.068 54
frozen yogurt, nonfat 128 69 3.94 0.18 28.16 2 7 0.265 134
buttermilk 40 90 3.31 0.88 4.79 4 33 0.154 116
sour cream 214 71 3.16 20.96 4.27 44 790 0.149 116
yogurt, plain, low-fat 63 85 5.25 1.55 7.04 6 66 0.214 183
yogurt, fruit, low-fat 102 74 4.37 1.08 19.05 4 46 0.178 152
   blue 353 42 21.40 28.74 2.34 75 721 0.382 528
   Brie 334 48 20.75 27.68 0.45 100 667 0.520 184
   Cheddar 403 37 24.90 33.14 1.28 105 1,059 0.375 721
   cottage 103 79 12.49 4.51 2.68 15 163 0.163 60
   cream 349 54 7.55 34.87 2.66 110 1,427 0.197 80
   mozzarella** 280 49 27.47 17.12 3.14 54 628 0.343 731
   Parmesan, grated 456 18 41.56 30.02 3.74 79 701 0.386 1,376
   Emmentaler (Swiss) 376 37 28.43 27.54 3.38 92 845 0.365 961
*Fortified with vitamin A.
**Low moisture, part skim.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Composition of Foods, Agriculture Handbook no. 8-1.


The fat in milk is secreted by specialized cells in the mammary glands of mammals. It is released as tiny fat globules or droplets, which are stabilized by a phospholipid and protein coat derived from the plasma membrane of the secreting cell. Milk fat is composed mainly of triglycerides—three fatty acid chains attached to a single molecule of glycerol. It contains 65 percent saturated, 32 percent monounsaturated, and 3 percent polyunsaturated fatty acids. The fat droplets carry most of the cholesterol and vitamin A. Therefore, skim milk, which has more than 99.5 percent of the milk fat removed, is significantly lower in cholesterol than whole milk (2 milligrams per 100 grams of milk, compared with 14 milligrams for whole milk) and must be fortified with vitamin A.


Milk contains a number of different types of proteins, depending on what is required for sustaining the young of the particular species. These proteins increase the nutritional value of milk and other dairy products and provide certain characteristics utilized for many of the processing methods. A major milk protein is casein, which actually exists as a multisubunit protein complex dispersed throughout the fluid phase of milk. Under certain conditions the casein complexes are disrupted, causing curdling of the milk. Curdling results in the separation of milk proteins into two distinct phases, a solid phase (the curds) and a liquid phase (the whey).


Lactose is the principal carbohydrate found in milk. It is a disaccharide composed of one molecule each of the monosaccharides (simple sugars) glucose and galactose. Lactose is an important food source for several types of fermenting bacteria. The bacteria convert the lactose into lactic acid, and this process is the basis for several types of dairy products.

In the diet lactose is broken down into its component glucose and galactose subunits by the enzyme lactase. The glucose and galactose can then be absorbed from the digestive tract for use by the body. Individuals deficient in lactase cannot metabolize lactose, a condition called lactose intolerance. The unmetabolized lactose cannot be absorbed from the digestive tract and therefore builds up, leading to intestinal distress.

Vitamins and minerals

Milk is a good source of many vitamins. However, its vitamin C (ascorbic acid) content is easily destroyed by heating during pasteurization. Vitamin D is formed naturally in milk fat by ultraviolet irradiation but not in sufficient quantities to meet human nutritional needs. Beverage milk is commonly fortified with the fat-soluble vitamins A and D. In the United States the fortification of skim milk and low-fat milk with vitamin A (in water-soluble emulsified preparations) is required by law.

Milk also provides many of the B vitamins. It is an excellent source of riboflavin (B2) and provides lesser amounts of thiamine (B1) and niacin. Other B vitamins found in trace amounts are pantothenic acid, folic acid, biotin, pyridoxine (B6), and vitamin B12.

Milk is also rich in minerals and is an excellent source of calcium and phosphorus. It also contains trace amounts of potassium, chloride, sodium, magnesium, sulfur, copper, iodine, and iron. A lack of adequate iron is said to keep milk from being a complete food.

Physical and biochemical properties





Fresh fluid milk


Quality concerns






Pasteurization is most important in all dairy processing. It is the biological safeguard which ensures that all potential pathogens are destroyed. Extensive studies have determined that heating milk to 63 °C (145 °F) for 30 minutes or 72 °C (161 °F) for 15 seconds kills the most resistant harmful bacteria. In actual practice these temperatures and times are exceeded, thereby not only ensuring safety but also extending shelf life.

food processing: HTST milk pasteurizer [Credit: © Larry Lefever/Grant Heilman Photography, Inc.]food processing: HTST milk pasteurizer© Larry Lefever/Grant Heilman Photography, Inc.Most milk today is pasteurized by the continuous high-temperature short-time (HTST) method (72 °C or 161 °F for 15 seconds or above). The HTST method is conducted in a series of stainless steel plates and tubes, with the hot pasteurized milk on one side of the plate being cooled by the incoming raw milk on the other side. This “regeneration” can be more than 90 percent efficient and greatly reduces the cost of heating and cooling. There are many fail-safe controls on an approved pasteurizer system to ensure that all milk is completely heated for the full time and temperature requirement. If the monitoring instruments detect that something is wrong, an automatic flow diversion valve will prevent the milk from moving on to the next processing stage. Higher temperatures and sometimes longer holding times are required for the pasteurization of milk or cream with a high fat or sugar content.

Pasteurized milk is not sterile and is expected to contain small numbers of harmless bacteria. Therefore, the milk must be immediately cooled to below 4.4 °C (40 °F) and protected from any outside contamination. The shelf life for high-quality pasteurized milk is about 14 days when properly refrigerated.

Extended shelf life can be achieved through ultrapasteurization. In this case, milk is heated to 138 °C (280 °F) for two seconds and aseptically placed in sterile conventional milk containers. Ultrapasteurized milk and cream must be refrigerated and will last at least 45 days. This process does minimal damage to the flavour and extends the shelf life of slow-selling products such as cream, eggnog, and lactose-reduced milks.

Ultrahigh-temperature (UHT) pasteurization is the same heating process as ultrapasteurization (138 °C or 280 °F for two seconds), but the milk then goes into a more substantial container—either a sterile five-layer laminated “box” or a metal can. This milk can be stored without refrigeration and has a shelf life of six months to a year. Products handled in this manner do not taste as fresh, but they are useful as an emergency supply or when refrigeration is not available.


Most modern plants use a separator to control the fat content of various products. A separator is a high-speed centrifuge that acts on the principle that cream or butterfat is lighter than other components in milk. (The specific gravity of skim milk is 1.0358, specific gravity of heavy cream 1.0083.) The heart of the separator is an airtight bowl with funnellike stainless steel disks. The bowl is spun at a high speed (about 6,000 revolutions per minute), producing centrifugal forces of 4,000 to 5,000 times the force of gravity. Centrifugation causes the skim, which is denser than cream, to collect at the outer wall of the bowl. The lighter part (cream) is forced to the centre and piped off for appropriate use.

An additional benefit of the separator is that it also acts as a clarifier. Particles even heavier than the skim, such as sediment, somatic cells, and some bacteria, are thrown to the outside and collected in pockets on the side of the separator. This material, known as “separator sludge,” is discharged periodically and sometimes automatically when buildup is sensed.

Most separators are controlled by computers and can produce milk of almost any fat content. Current standards generally set whole milk at 3.25 percent fat, low-fat at 1 or 2 percent, and skim at less than 0.5 percent. (Most skim milk is actually less than 0.01 percent fat.)


Milk is homogenized to prevent fat globules from floating to the top and forming a cream layer or cream plug. Homogenizers are simply heavy-duty, high-pressure pumps equipped with a special valve at the discharge end. They are designed to break up fat globules from their normal size of up to 18 micrometres to less than 2 micrometres in diameter (a micrometre is one-millionth of a metre). Hot milk (with the fat in liquid state) is pumped through the valve under high pressure, resulting in a uniform and stable distribution of fat throughout the milk.

Two-stage homogenization is sometimes practiced, during which the milk is forced through a second homogenizer valve or a breaker ring. The purpose is to break up fat clusters or clumps and thus produce a more uniform product with a slightly reduced viscosity.

Homogenization is considered successful when there is no visible separation of cream and the fat content in the top 100 millilitres of milk in a one-litre bottle does not differ by more than 10 percent from the bottom portion after standing 48 hours.

In addition to avoiding a cream layer, other benefits of homogenized milk include a whiter appearance, richer flavour, more uniform viscosity, better “whitening” in coffee, and softer curd tension (making the milk more digestible for humans). Homogenization is also essential for providing improved body and texture in ice cream, as well as numerous other products such as half-and-half, cream cheese, and evaporated milk.


Until the mid 1880s milk was dipped from large cans into the consumer’s own containers. The glass milk bottle was invented in 1884 and became the main container of retail distribution until World War II, when wax-coated paper containers were introduced. Plastic-coated paper followed and became the predominate container. Today more than 75 percent of retail sales are in translucent plastic jugs. Glass bottles make up less than 0.5 percent of the business and are used mostly at dairy stores and for home delivery.

Modern packaging machines are self-cleaning and provide an aseptic environment for milk packaging. Their improved design has allowed milk to remain fresh for at least 14 days and has made it possible for use with ultrapasteurizing equipment for extended shelf-life applications.

Specialty milks

Many specialty milks are now available (even in remote areas) as a result of the 45-day refrigerated shelf life of ultrapasteurized milk. One of the most useful products, lactose-reduced milk, is available in both nonfat and low-fat composition as well as in many flavoured versions. The lactose (milk sugar) is reduced by 70 to 100 percent, making it possible for lactose-intolerant individuals to enjoy the benefits of milk in their diets. Lactose reduction is accomplished by subjecting the appropriate milk to the action of the enzyme lactase in a refrigerated tank for approximately 24 hours. The enzyme breaks down the lactose to more readily digestible glucose and galactose. The reaction is halted when the lactose is consumed or when the milk is heat-treated. The resulting beverage is sweeter than regular milk but acceptable for most uses.

Other specialty milks include calcium-fortified, special and seasonal flavours (e.g., eggnog), and high-volume flavoured milk shakes (frequently served in schools).

Condensed and dried milk

Condensed and evaporated milk

Whole, low-fat, and skim milks, as well as whey and other dairy liquids, can be efficiently concentrated by the removal of water, using heat under vacuum. Since reducing atmospheric pressure lowers the temperature at which liquids boil, the water in milk is evaporated without imparting a cooked flavour. Water can also be removed by ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis, but this membrane technology is more expensive. Usually about 60 percent of the water is removed, which reduces storage space and shipping costs. Whole milk, when concentrated, usually contains 7.5 percent milk fat and 25.5 percent total milk solids. Skim milk can be condensed to approximately 20 to 40 percent solids, depending on the buyer’s needs.

Condensed milk is often sold in refrigerated tank-truck loads to manufacturers of candy, bakery goods, ice cream, cheese, and other foods. When preserved by heat in individual cans, it is usually called “evaporated milk.” In this process the concentrated milk is homogenized, fortified with vitamin D (A and D in evaporated skim milk), and sealed in a can sized for the consumer. A stabilizer, such as disodium phosphate or carrageenan, is also added to keep the product from separating during processing and storage. The sealed can is then sterilized at 118 °C (244 °F) for 15 minutes, cooled, and labeled. Evaporated milk keeps indefinitely, although staling and browning may occur after a year.

New ultrahigh-temperature (UHT) processing and aseptic filling of foil-lined cardboard or metal cans is also practiced. Although this process is more costly, the scorched flavour is not as pronounced as with conventionally processed evaporated milk.

Sweetened condensed milk is also made by partially removing the water (as in evaporated milk) and adding sugar. The final product contains about 8.5 percent milk fat and at least 28 percent total milk solids. Sugar is added in sufficient amount to prevent bacterial action and subsequent spoilage. Usually, at least 60 percent sugar in the water phase is required to provide sufficient osmotic pressure for prevention of bacterial growth. Because sweetened condensed milk (or skim milk) is preserved by sugar, the milk merely needs to be pasteurized before being placed in a sanitary container (usually a metal can).

Dry milk products

Milk and by-products of milk production are often dried to reduce weight, to aid in shipping, to extend shelf life, and to provide a more useful form as an ingredient for other foods. In addition to skim and whole milk, a variety of useful dairy products are dried, including buttermilk, malted milk, instant breakfast, sweet cream, sour cream, butter powder, ice cream mix, cheese whey, coffee creamer, dehydrated cheese products, lactose, and caseinates. Many drying plants are built in conjunction with a butter-churning plant. These plants utilize the skim milk generated from the separated cream and the buttermilk produced from churning the butter. Most products are dried to less than 4 percent moisture to prevent bacterial growth and spoilage. However, products containing fat lose their freshness rather quickly owing to the oxidation of fatty acids, leading to rancidity.

Two types of dryers are used in the production of dried milk products—drum dryers and spray dryers. Each dryer has certain advantages.

Drum dryers

The simplest and least expensive is the drum, or roller, dryer. It consists of two large steel cylinders that turn toward each other and are heated from the inside by steam. The concentrated product is applied to the hot drum in a thin sheet that dries during less than one revolution and is scraped from the drum by a steel blade. The flakelike powder dissolves poorly in water but is often preferred in certain bakery products. Drum dryers are also used to manufacture animal feed where texture, flavour, and solubility are not a major consideration.

Spray dryers

Spray dryers are more commonly used since they do less heat damage and produce more soluble products. Concentrated liquid dairy product is sprayed in a finely atomized form into a stream of hot air. The air may be heated by steam-heated “radiators” or directly by sulfur-free natural gas. The drying chamber may be rectangular (the size of a living room), conical, or silo-shaped (up to five stories high). The powder passes from the drying chamber through a series of cyclone collectors and is usually placed in plastic-lined, heavy-duty paper bags.

Spray-dried milk is also difficult to reconstitute or mix with water. Therefore, a process called agglomeration was developed to “instantize” the powder, or make it more soluble. This process involves rewetting the fine, spray-dried powder with water to approximately 8 to 15 percent moisture and following up with a second drying cycle. The powder is now granular and dissolves very well in water. Virtually all retail packages of nonfat dry milk powder are instantized in this manner.

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