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Whey management in dairying
Dr. A.K. Misra
Dean, Faculty of Dairy Technology
West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences, Mohanpur, Nadia, (W.B.)
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Milk is used as a base for sweetmeat preparation in the form of khoa or chhana. In India, chhana is in great demand for the preparation of Rasogolla, Sandesh and their variants. Whey is obtained as a by-product in the manufacture of chhana. India at present produces 1.2 million tones of chhana every year (Dairy India, 1997). This results in an annual turnover of 8.0 million tones of whey. The contribution of eastern India to the total production of whey is not precisely known, although the contribution is expected to be substantially large. Whey contains almost all nutrients present in the milk. It contains about half the milk solids, most of the lactose, about one- fifth of the protein and most of the vitamins and minerals. The proteins present in whey comprise of about 50 percent beta-lactoglobulin, 25 percent alpha-lactoalbumin and 255 other proteins with a balanced spectrum of amino acids.
Disposal of whey possesses a serious problem to the dairy industry because of the high organic content. It has been estimated that the biological oxygen demand (BOD) of whey ranges from 38,000 to 46,000 ppm as compared to 200 ppm in case of sewage (NDRI, 1978). Therefore, the disposal of whey is a costly proposition. There is high variation in the composition of whey depending upon its origin e.g. chhana whey, cheddar cheese whey and acid casein whey etc. Chhana whey contains relatively less amount of ash and more amount of lactose, which makes the by-product much more useful as a fermentation base as compared to other sources of whey.
Several methods have been suggested for efficient disposal of whey. Whey has been very efficiently utilized in the production of whey powder, whey paste, lactose and lactic acid, ice-cream mix, milk biscuits, cheese spreads, infant food formulations, vinegar production, soft and alcoholic beverages etc. But still the potential of whey has not been fully exploited. The problem arising from dumping whey down the drain leads to an economic loss. The Government of India has promulgated the Environmental Protection Act – 1986, that makes it obligatory to pre treat whey before discharge in inland water or rivers. Thus utilization of whey through economical processes at cottage level is the demand of the day.
In general, utilization of whey can be classified into two major categories e.g. non-fermented products and fermented products.
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A. NON-FERMENTED PRODUCTS
Bakery Products:
In USA nearly 50 percent of the whey is used in the production of icings, fillings, breads rolls and cookies etc.
Crop Production:
Whey contains nearly 93 percent of water. In USA and Europe, the whey is used for nurturing the corn. Application of whey at 4, 8, 16 and 32 inches (1”=28,000 gallons) over a period of 4 years have been found to improve the quality of corn production (Peterson et al., 1979). Application of whey over a long period of time has been found to increase the concentration of phosphorus and potassium in the surface soil.
Animal Feed: Whey is used as a feed for livestock particularly the young calves. It was observed that young calves could obtain 20-30 percent of their total dry matter requirement from whey (Paul Lynch and McDonough, 1979). It also provided enough proteins necessary for adequate growth. Liquid acid whey permeates (LAWP) along with 19 percent dry protein supplements could provide 26 percent of the dry matter intake and showed adequate growth. The whey protein concentrate (WPC) resulting from the ultra
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filtration of whey could be used as a milk replacer for the calves.
Whey Protein Concetrate (WPC):
Whey proteins are easily digestible, and are considered to be highly nutritional and physiologically complete. In addition, they posses excellent functional characteristics. WPC has been prepared commercially by ultra filtration, reverse osmosis and electro dialysis. It is used in milk replacers, egg substitutes, ice-cream mixes, processed cheese foods, whipped toppings and the like.
Polyurethane Foam:
Dried whey is used for the production of polyurethane foam. The lactose present in the dried whey has been found to be a suitable source of Polyhydroxyl compound, which is used for the production of plastic materials (Husttod et al., 1970).
Confectionery Products:
Whey solids are used as an ingredient for the formulation of confectionery products. Confectionery coatings prepared by using whey in the formulations have enhanced the texture, flavour and colour characteristics of the finished products. It also preserves the freshness of the product in year round usage.
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139
Dairy Year Book 2008 |
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