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Milk, Milk processing

Course developer

Replaced course

PārZ4029 [GPAR4029] Milk, Milk processing

Course abstract

The main task of the course is to give knowledge in milk processing for consumers safe and healthy product production. The students get knowledge of the chemical composition, properties and estimation criteria of raw milk. They acquire fundamentals in milk product production (thermally treated, fermented milk products and ice cream) to understand physical, biochemical and microbiological processes occurring during production. They gain information on the development of milk products faults and possibilities to avoid them. During laboratory works, they get practical experience in milk product production and quality control.

Learning outcomes and their assessment

Theoretical knowledge about milk composition and quality influencing factors, milk products’ production technologies and understanding of physical, chemical and microbiological processes occurring at milk products production – 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th colloquium, laboratory works.
Practical knowledge and skills - to explain milk product faults and possibilities to avoid them relating to milk composition, quality, and applied technological processes and parameters as well as technological aids; practical experience in milk products quality testing – laboratory works, self-studies, excursions.
Competence – to be able to organise milk products production, raw materials storing and quality control according to the requirements of the legislative acts, as well as to analyse and evaluate risk factors in milk products’ production – laboratory works, and exam.

Course Content(Calendar)

1. Introduction to the course: course structure, aim and tasks, learning outcomes. Milk secretion. Milk proteins, casein and whey protein characteristics. Protein separation techniques applied in milk processing (2h lecture).
2. Milk protein separation methods (6h laboratory work).
3. The analysis of milk composition and quality (6h laboratory works).
4. Milk lipids. Lactose, minerals, vitamins, antibodies, gases and somatic cells. Milk sensory and physically-chemical properties. Milk adulteration, substances (2h lecture).
5. The changes in milk composition and quality under the influence of several factors. Mandatory requirements on milk safety, legislative acts, and their approach (2h lecture). 1st colloquium – Milk composition and quality, its variation and requirements of the legislative acts.
6. Milk mechanical and thermal treatment. Milk standardisation (6h laboratory works). Sanitation and disinfection process, applied chemicals, concentrations and technology flow in the processing companies (4h lecture).
7. Thermally treated milk and cream technology. Dairy starters, starters’ production technology. Fermented milk products (drinks) technology (4h lecture). 2nd colloquium – Milk mechanical and thermal treatment, thermally treated and fermented milk products production.
8. Fermented milk products technology, their faults, prevention and prediction possibilities (2h lecture). The study of the syneresis process in curd production (6 h laboratory work).
9. Ice-cream production technology, its defects, and prevention possibilities. Butter, butter production technology (4h lecture).
10. Dairy spreads, production technology. Butter faults, possibilities to improve a product structure and water dispersion (4h lecture). Butter quality control (6h laboratory works). 3rd colloquium – Fermented milk products, ice cream and butter production technology.
11. Cheese chemical composition, classification criteria. Milk treatment, technological aids for cheese production (4h lecture). The study of milk rennetability influencing factors (6h laboratory work).
12. Milk renneting, coagulum and cheese grains treatment. Cheese moulding and pressing, differences in applied methods. Cheese salting, principles of salting. Cheese ripening. Cheese ripening conditions, characteristic cheese faults (4h lecture). Cheese production (6h laboratory work). 4th colloquium – Fundamentals of cheese making.
13. Concentrated and dried milk products production technology. Characteristics of milk production by-products. Casein and caseinates production technology (4h lecture).
14. The analysis of reconstituted milk (6h laboratory work).
15. Whey processing (2h lecture).
16. Summary of the study course. 5th colloquium – Concentrated and dried milk products production, by-product processing. Examination.
Part-time extramural studies:
All the topics intended for full-time studies are covered, yet the number of contact hours is ½ of the specified number of hours.

Requirements for awarding credit points

The exam is resulted from:
• completed laboratory works and presented results (20%);
• successfully written five colloquiums in the study course thematic (20%);
• examination (60%).
• It is possible to get an accumulation exam if the mean value from all written colloquiums is 6 or above.

Description of the organization and tasks of students’ independent work

Independent work is to acquaint with the Regulations of the European Parliament and Commission on animal origin products production, safety, and quality criteria; to acquire the formation of milk products faults; to introduce milk products production (video materials, animations in e-studies or suggested in the lectures); to analyse the elaborated laboratory work results and to make conclusions and results interpretation.

Criteria for Evaluating Learning Outcomes

A colloquium consists of multiple-choice and open-ended questions, it is evaluated on a 10-point scale. Each question has shown a maximal number of available points. The colloquium is successfully written if students get minimally 4 points. If the evaluation is lower than previously set, students should write the colloquium repeatedly (in this case the average evaluation of the colloquium is summarized from both colloquiums (unsuccessfully and successfully written)). A laboratory work is evaluated as a pass. The assessment of the study course results from colloquium results (mean) and completed/presented laboratory works, as well as written examination results. It is possible to get an accumulation exam if the mean value from all written colloquiums is 6 or above.

Compulsory reading

1. Ozola L., Ciproviča I. Piena pārstrādes tehnoloģija. Jelgava: LLU, 2002., 248 lpp.
2. Fundamentals of cheese science/ P.F. Fox, etc. New York, NY: Springer, 2016. 799 p.
3. Dairy science and technology/ P.Walstra, J.T.M. Wouters, T.J.Geurts. Boca Raton: CRC/Taylor & Francis, 2006., 782 p.
4. Dairy powders and concentrated products/ edited by A.Y. Tamine. Chichester; Ames, Iowa: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009., 380 p.
5. Dairy fats and related products/ edited by A.Y. Tamine. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Ames, Iowa: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009., 326 p.

Further reading

1. Microbiology handbook. Dairy products/ edited by R. Fernandes. Leatherhead: Leatherhead Food International; Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry, 2009., 173 p.
2. Cheese problems solved/edited by P.L.H. McSweeney. Boca Raton [etc.]: CRC Press; Cambridge: Woodhead Publishing Limited, 2007., 402 p.

Periodicals and other sources

Journal of Dairy Science
International Dairy Journal

Cheese.com

Notes

Compulsory study course for part-time students studying in the first cycle professional study programme “Food technology”.