About Lesson
Milk constituents:
a) Major : water, fat, protein, lactose, ash or mineral matter.
b) Minor : phospholipids, sterols, vitamins, enzymes, pigments etc.
c) True constituents : milk fat, casein, lactose.
The average composition of cow’s milk is shown in Table.
Table: Composition of cow’s milk
|
Main constituents |
Range (%) |
Mean (%) |
|
Water |
85.5 – 89.5 |
87.0 |
|
Total solids |
10.5 – 14.5 |
13.0 |
|
Fat |
2.5 – 6.0 |
4.0 |
|
Proteins |
2.9 – 5.0 |
3.4 |
|
Lactose |
3.6 – 5.5 |
4.8 |
|
Minerals |
0.6 – 0.9 |
0.8 |
Water:
- Water is a medium in which all the other constituents are dissolved/dispersed.
- Water is the main constituent of milk and much milk processing is designed to remove water from milk or reduce the moisture content of the product.