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

Chapter 3 – Milk and dairy product composition 57
and Jumah et al., 2001, cited in Al Haj and Al Kanhal, 2010). Even though the
antimicrobial components in camel milk are more heat stable than those in cow and
buffalo milk, heating camel milk to 100 °C for 30 minutes results in a total loss of
antimicrobial activity (El-Agamy, 2007).
The vitamin C content of dromedary camel milk shows a wide range, depending
on breed, ranging from 2.5 mg/100 g in the Majaheem breed from Saudi
Arabia (Mehaia, 1994) to 18.4 mg/100 g milk in the Arvana breed from Kazakhstan
(Konuspayeva et al., 2010). However, vitamin C in camel milk may be more heatsensitive
than in cow milk, decreasing by about 27 percent when the milk is pasteurized
(Mehaia, 1994).
Mithun milk
The domesticated bovine species, mithun (Bos frontalis), is mainly found in the hill
regions of India, Myanmar, Bhutan and Bangladesh (Nath and Verma, 2000), where
it plays an important role in the economic, social and cultural life of the local people.
Hybrids of mithun and cattle are used as dairy animals in parts of northeastern India
and Bhutan (NRCM, 2010).
Very few studies are available on the composition of mithun milk. The milk
contains more total fat (8.9 g/100 g) and total protein (6.5 g/100 g) than cow milk
(3.3 g fat and 3.3 g protein/100 g milk) (Mech et al., 2008). The high fat and protein
contents in mithun milk are attributed to the unique genetic makeup of this species
and to its low milk yield (Mondal et al., 2001; Mech et al., 2008).
Musk ox milk
The musk ox (Ovibos moschatus) is an Arctic mammal that belongs to the subfamily
Caprinae, as do goat and sheep. Data on only proximate composition were available
for musk ox, obtained from one study (Tener, 1956 cited in Alston-Mills, 1995).
Musk ox milk contains more protein and fat but less lactose and water than cow
milk. However, the fat content (5.4 milk g/100 g) is not high for an Arctic animal.
The ash content in musk ox milk is more than double that of cow milk (1.6 g/100 g
compared with 0.7 g/100 g).
Llama and alpaca milks
Llama (Lama glama) and alpaca (Lama pacos), both domesticated species of South
American camelids, have historically not been bred for dairy purposes. Information
on milk composition and consumption is scarce. These milks are an underutilized
nutritional and economic resource for the people living in the mountainous areas of
South America (Fernandez and Oliver, 1988; Riek and Gerken, 2006).
Alpaca milk is richer in protein and ash than milks from the other camelids and
cow milk. Llama milk does not contain measurable amounts of β-lactoglobulin
(Fernandez and Oliver, 1988; Merin et al., 2001; Jirimutu et al., 2010).
No studies are available on the FA composition of alpaca milk, but one study
(Schoos et al., 2008) reported the FA composition of llama milk. The proportions of
SFA, C4–C10, MUFA and PUFA in llama milk fat are comparable to the values in
cow milk. The predominant FAs in llama milk are C16:0, C18:1, C14:0 and C18:0.
The milk also contains trans-FA at 3 g/100 g total FA (mainly C18:1 trans-11), and
a small amount of CLA (0.4 g/100 g total FA).