Recent Advances in Camel Milk Processing

Simple Summary

The camel milk market was limited for a long time by its almost exclusive self-consumption use in nomadic camps. Significant development has been observed for the past two or three decades, including internationally, boosted by its reputation regarding its health effects for regular consumers. Such emergence has led the stakeholders in the sector to offer diversified products corresponding to the tastes of increasingly urbanized consumers, more sensitive to “modern” products. Thus, traditionally drunk in raw or naturally fermented form, camel milk has undergone unprecedented transformations such as pasteurization, directed fermentation, cheese or yoghurt processing, and manufacture of milk powder for the export market. However, the specific characteristics of this milk (composition, physical properties) mean that the technologies applied (copied from technologies used for cow milk) must be adapted. In this review, some technological innovations are presented, enabling stakeholders of the camel milk sector to satisfy the demand of manufacturers and consumers.

Abstract

Camel milk is a newcomer to domestic markets and especially to the international milk market. This recent emergence has been accompanied by a diversification of processed products, based on the technologies developed for milk from other dairy species. However, technical innovations had to be adapted to a product with specific behavior and composition. The transformation of camel milk into pasteurized milk, fermented milk, cheese, powder, or other products was supported, under the pressure of commercial development, by technological innovations made possible by a basic and applied research set. Some of these innovations regarding one of the less studied milk sources are presented here, as well as their limitations. Technical investigations for an optimal pasteurization, development of controlled fermentation at industrial scale, control of cheese technology suitable for standardized production, and improvements in processes for the supply of a high-quality milk powder are among the challenges of research regarding camel milk.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and pesticides in milk powder

This Research Communication reports analysis of 37 compounds comprising polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), organochlorine and organophosphate pesticides (OCPS and OPPS) in milk powder (one brand each of commercial infant formulae, follow-on formulae and baby formulae purchased from a local supermarket in Romania). The selected analytes were investigated using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), gas chromatography with electron capture detector (GC-ECD) and gas chromatography with thermionic sensitive detection (GC-TSD). The estimated limits of detection for most target analytes were in the μg/kg level (range 0·001-0·320 µg/kg). The purpose of the study was to determine the selected analytes, to assess the exposure of babies and infants and to produce data for comparison with tolerable limits according to the European Union Regulations. In most of the samples the organochlorine pesticides values were under the limit of detection. Exceptions were heptachlor epoxide and endosulfan sulphate, the last of which was found in all analysed samples at low concentrations. We also found detectable levels of ethoprophos, parathion-methyl, chlorpyrifos, prothiofos, guthion, disulfoton and fenchlorphos in most of the analysed samples. Benzo[a]pyrene, which is used as an indicator for the presence of PAHs, was not detected in selected samples. The low level of exposure to contaminants indicates that there are no health risks for the infants and babies that consume this brand of milk powder formulae.