Novel technologies for extending the shelf life of drinking milk: Concepts, research trends and current applications

Abstract

Consumption milk with longer shelf-life is nowadays required to have access to markets of distant countries. Novel technologies for milk processing, alternative to conventional heat-treatments, may provide milk industry with reliable, efficient and clean equipment for consumption milk manufacture. This review addresses the most promising technologies, either under experimental examination or already commercially available. In particular, scientific literature documenting the performances of ohmic heating, microwaves, radio frequency, microfiltration, high pressure, and pulsed electric field is presented. Attention is given to the respective effectiveness in destroying microorganisms, inactivate enzymes, avoid damage to milk components as well as to the consequent microbiological and physicochemical stability of processed milk during storage. Although most technologies allow destroying or remove vegetative bacterial cells, so far none proves to represent a comprehensive alternative to conventional heat treatments of milk. Microfiltration is currently applied as a preliminary treatment in production of extended shelf life (ESL) pasteurized milk, however successful applications in UHT milk manufacture have been proposed as well. High-pressure homogenization prolongs physical stability to conventionally heat-treated milk. The combination of an alternative technology, most promisingly pulsed electric field, with mild thermal treatments represents, at the moment, the sole realistic approach to produce fresh-like/high quality pasteurized milk.

Focus on the Protein Fraction of Sports Nutrition Supplements

“…Conversely, the evaluation of TAA and FAA profiles allowed us to verify whether the claimed supplementation was complied with. The implementation of non-thermal milk sanitizing processes in the manufacturing process of PSS would also reduce irreversible modifications of the protein fraction that represents the most valuable component of these products [ 49 ]. Finally, findings from this study suggest that mandatory batch testing of commercial PSS could be advisable to ensure compliance with labelled data and explore for potential adulteration.…”

Advances in radio frequency pasteurisation equipment for liquid foods: a review

“…The effectiveness of novel processing technologies in the shelf life extension of liquid foods can be guaranteed accordingly to the theory of obstacles: the milder the heat treatments, the greater the design and control systems that need to be adopted in the subsequent operation, such as filling and packaging operations. Those play an important role in maintaining low levels of micro‐organisms during the shelf life of products such as drinking milk (D’Incecco et al ., 2021).…”

The Importance of Heating Unit Operations in the Food Industry to Obtain Safe and High-Quality Products

“…D’Incecco et al ( 10 ) in their review present an overview of novel technologies for milk processing, some under research or commercially available. The objectives of these alternative technologies are to achieve microorganisms and enzymes inactivation efficiently with minimum damage of milk components.…”