Dry Dairy Ingredients Offer Multiple Benefits
The Dry Milk and Whey Forum, held December 7 - 8 in Salt Lake City, UT, brought together more than 60 strategic partners in the dairy and food industries to discuss the future direction of dairy research and its practical applications for food technologists. The forum was sponsored by Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) and funded by America's dairy farmers.
Among the concepts presented was the "whey refinery," based on principles of oil refining. This process would enable processors to specifically tailor dairy ingredients based on food technologists' formulation needs. A whey refinery could extract up to 100 usable whey-based derivatives by isolating whey proteins with applicable functions in the food industry.
Certain whey protein fractions already are available for use in food formulations. Several overseas companies utilize fractionated milk products as ingredients in finished product categories such as milk peptides in performance-enhancing flavored sports drinks with amino acids, calcium in fortified beverages, and fortified milk powders in infant formulas.
Food manufacturing representatives attending the forum included Hershey Foods Corp. in Hershey, PA, and Nabisco Biscuit Company in East Hanover, NJ. Both companies agreed that the health benefits, functionality and quality of dry dairy products influence their ingredient selection process.
Several dairy center researchers presenting at the forum spoke of forming closer partnerships with food product developers seeking to use dry dairy ingredients in new or existing formulations.
Allen Foegeding, Ph.D., professor of food science, North Carolina State University, called for model food systems, similar to animal models used by medical researchers, to bridge the gap between solution functionality and food functionality.
Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) is the domestic and international planning and management organization responsible for increasing demand for dairy products on behalf of America's dairy farmers. For more information contact DMI at 1-800-248-8829.