Milk-and-Dairy-Products-in-Human-Nutrition-FAO

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Milk and dairy products in human nutrition
Key developments in dairy processing include cold storage of raw milk
(which is probably the major single factor influencing the quality of raw milk),
pasteurization, UHT treatment and sterile packaging. Other significant technological
developments include membrane filtration, developments in molecular
biology and molecular interactions and in enzyme technologies. Breakthroughs in
packaging also have been integral to developments in dairy technology. Disposable
packaging has become prevalent, and there has been a development towards
composite materials specifically designed for various products. Some packaging
technologies have helped extend the shelf-life of dairy products. In general, the
developments in packaging materials and systems have improved protection of
dairy products and helped promote the consumption of milk and dairy products
(Gorski-Berry, 1999).
Driving such technological development is a major research effort by both
academia and the private sector. There is now a thorough and detailed knowledge
of milk constituents and their behaviour during processing and storage of products
as well as a good grasp of the variations occurring and their importance. This,
along with the natural molecular organization of mammalian milk, has enabled the
dairy industry to preserve and manipulate milk constituents into an ever-increasing
diversity of products, with much local variation and tradition still intact.
The technological development and innovation have not, of course, proceeded
at the same rate everywhere. However, the increased globalization of
the dairy industry as well as the concentration of the supply of ingredients or
dairy processing equipment in the hands of only a few companies has reduced
many regional differences. Dairy plants are developing along very similar lines
and emerging technologies or novel processing aids are being applied around
the world. Thus products with very similar characteristics are available in many
different countries. However, there are major differences in dairy plants. Dairy
processing plants in the developing world, with generally lower labour costs,
use much more manual labour in the packaging departments, and hence generate
much more employment.
2.5 Trends in international trade in livestock products
Between 1961 and 2008, the relative share of livestock products (meat, dairy and
eggs) in global agricultural export value increased from 11 percent to 17 percent
(Figure 2.12). However, most of this trade was in meat products. In spite of the
growing importance of livestock products in international agricultural trade, trade
in crops still dwarfs that of livestock products.
Technological progress in processing and packaging has contributed to expansion
of trade in dairy products. Between 1980 and 2008, the volume of total dairy
exports (expressed in milk equivalents) more than doubled, from 41.7 million
tonnes in 1980 to 92.2 million tonnes in 2008. Also the share of dairy production
that entered international trade also increased, from 8.5 percent to 12.6 percent.
This reflects the increasing degree of openness of the sector to trade and was also
influenced by heavy use of export subsidies by developed countries. However, the
share of output that is traded internationally still remains relatively low because
dairy products are highly perishable and most dairy products are consumed within
the country of production (Table 2.6).