Analysis of milk and dairy products
Milk and dairy products are an essential part of the daily diet for broad parts of the population, which can also be seen in the very large variety of dairy products, such as curd cheese, yogurt, cheese, butter, etc. in grocery stores. These products are strictly regulated to ensure that milk and dairy products are safe to consume. In addition to the analysis of ingredients (such as nutritional analysis, fatty acid spectra or vitamins), testing of residues and contaminants (including veterinary drugs, detergent residues, dioxins, aflatoxin M1) or testing for genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is a very important aspect.
Overview Food AnalysisAdulteration by melamine
The protein quantity is relevant to obtain a good price for milk. The protein content is measured non-specifically as a sum parameter with the nitrogen compound determination according to Kjehldahl, so that artificially added nitrogen-containing substances are not detected. In 2008, a major food adulteration scandal occurred in China, so that shelves of milk powder were sold out or rationed in Europe as well. The consequences of the scandal were felt for years. What had happened? Melamine was added to milk because this small polar compound is very rich in nitrogen (67% by mass). Melamine in combination with cyanuric acid can cause fatal kidney stones due to the formation of an insoluble melamine-cyanurate complex. The consequences can be lethal for infants and young children. The determination of melamine and other small nitrogenous compounds (ammelin, ammelide and cyanuric acid) is therefore very important for food safety.
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Food additives
Additives are often added to foodstuffs to ensure that products made from yogurt, cottage cheese or cream cakes, for example, last longer, that their consistency is pleasing to the tongue or that they look appetizing. These may be of natural origin or may have been produced synthetically. For the labeling of food additives within the EU and Switzerland are listed according to Annex II of Regulation (EC) No. 1333/2008.
Example of synthetic coal tar dye E124 Ponceau 4R, red in color. For example added to ice cream or cheesecake mix.
We would like to use an example to show which synthetic food colors can be detected in yogurt. Because as we all know: you eat with your eyes first.
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Mycotoxins
Mycotoxins are contaminants widespread in food and feed. They are metabolites produced by certain types of molds. Mycotoxins frequently found in food and feed are aflatoxins, ochratoxins, fumonisins, trichothecenes and zearalenone.
In addition to aflatoxin B1, the toxins B2, G1 and G2 as well as the derivatives M1 and M2 found in milk are of particular importance. Their toxicity and potential health hazards are well known and lead to a need for sensitive and efficient sample preparation methods. For this purpose, we have developed the CHROMABOND QuEChERS Mix M1 and here we demonstrate how to detect mycotoxins in urine samples using HPLC.
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Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in milk, curd cheese (quark) and other foodstuffs
The FDA classified PFAS as food contact substances because of their potential to migrate into food and therefore regulates them as food additives. To protect human health, the exposure of the levels of PFAS along the food chain must be investigated more intensively. Therefore, there is need for more sensitive analytical methods for PFAS in food of animal and plant-based origin. Here we present the analysis of PFAS from food according to FDA Method C-010.02. It shows high recoveries using a modified QuEChERS extraction technique from milk and curd cheese, bread, brussel sprouts, spinach and egg. The extracts are finally analyzed by HPLC-MS/MS on a NUCLEODUR PFAS column.
Please find recommended apllications for PFAS from food in our application database
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QUANTOFIX Peroxide and Peracetic Acid for residues of desinfectants
In the dairy industry, test papers are used for analytics in quality control. The test papers in this special selection provide important results for dairy farmers and in the production of dairy products. Test strips for peroxide or peracetic acid are used, for example, to exclude residues of disinfectants in packages.
Hydrogen peroxide, as a strong oxidizing agent, is a popular disinfectant and is widely used in the food and dairy industries. If the residue control is negative, plants can be safely restarted without disinfectants getting into dairy products. Negative control of the final product (yogurt, milk) is also frequently performed as packages are cold nebulized by various disinfectants prior to filling.
The different test strips QUANTOFIX Peroxide and QUANTOFIX Peracetic Acid from MACHEREY‑NAGEL for different measuring ranges can thus be used to optimally supplement quality control.
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QUANTOFIX Calcium for mineral analysis
Calcium is a vital mineral, especially for the formation of bones and teeth. Furthermore, this mineral is essential for blood clotting and to ensure the body's own cell functions. Calcium helps stabilize cell walls and transmit signals and stimuli in the nervous system. For these reasons, the body needs up to 1000 mg of caclium per day.
One of the most important sources of calcium is milk and milk products (except curd cheese). For example, a glass of milk contains about 300 mg of calcium and thus covers 30% of the daily calcium requirement. Our QUANTOFIX Calcium Test Strips are particularly suitable for checking the calcium content of various foods. Ideal for quick and easy analysis of calcium directly on site.
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QUANTOFIX Nitrate 250 – Flexible Nitrate Control for Dairies and Infant Food Manufacturers
Nitrate can enter milk through contaminated drinking water or nitrate-rich feed – a critical factor for both dairies and manufacturers of infant food. In the human body, nitrate can be converted to nitrite, which poses health risks, especially for infants. Plant-based ingredients like spinach, commonly used in baby food, may also contain elevated nitrate levels – making regular testing essential.
QUANTOFIX Nitrate 250 is a flexible solution for rapid nitrate detection in milk, whey, process water, and plant-based raw materials. The test strip can be read visually or – for documented, objective results – evaluated reflectometrically using the QUANTOFIX Relax. You decide how to measure – based on your specific needs.
With a broad measuring range of 4 to 250 mg/L nitrate, the test delivers reliable results within just one minute and can be easily integrated into existing quality control workflows.
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Pasteurization and heating processes in the dairy industry
Pasteurisation and heating processes are essential to be able to offer a safe and harmless dairy product. Heating processes for sterilisation, such as in UHT milk, can be checked easily and quickly with test strips from MACHEREY-Nagel. Peroxtemso MI test strips detect lactoperoxidase in milk and are suitable for checking UHT heating. With the help of the Phosphatemso MI test strips, alkaline phosphatase can be used for simple quality control for pasteurisation - the killing of microorganisms.
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Udder test paper for the detection of mastitis
Mastitis is an inflammation of the udder of a cow. Clinical mastitis can be quickly recognized by cloudy and flocculent milk. However, there are also subclinical udder inflammations in which neither the milk nor the udder of a cow show externally recognizable symptoms. However, the chemical composition of the milk is still altered, but not immediately apparent.
With the Udder test paper, the conspicuous pH values in freshly milked milk caused by udder inflammation can be detected quickly and easily. The indicator paper is therefore used for the rapid detection of secretion disorders, which are often the first sign of an incipient and therefore the presence of mastitis. Milk from cows affected in this way must not be placed on the market.
Water distribution in butter as quality criterion
Brand butter is made from cream and is evaluated with different quality factors. Besides taste, appearance and odor, texture and water distribution are very important criteria.
The shelf life of butter is also very closely linked to water distribution, i.e. the size of the water or buttermilk droplets it contains. The MACHEREY‑NAGEL WATOR test paper is used to determine the size and number of water droplets in butter quickly and easily. To test, the test paper is simply pressed onto the cut surface of the butter. The test paper then reacts with the moisture in the butter and the water droplets become visible as deep blue dots.
The evaluation of the water distribution is carried out with a 5-point evaluation system of DIN 10311. With WATOR, you thus ensure an important quality criterion in butter.
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DNA extraction from milk and dairy
Tracking genetically modified organisms (GMOs) strengthens consumer confidence in milk and dairy products and ensures that they comply with national and international regulations. Molecular biological methods such as qPCR, PCR or sequencing can detect even small amounts of GMOs. Molecular biological detection methods also play a decisive role in the detection of pathogens or germs (Salmonella spp., Campylobacter spp., Listeria, moulds, ...), in identification and species detection or in origin analysis. MACHEREY‑NAGEL's NucleoSpin Food and NucleoMag DNA Food extraction kits are the ideal solutions for your molecular biological milk analysis. The buffer chemistry of these kits was developed specifically for food analysis. They allow the manual or automated high-throughput extraction of highly pure DNA from various sample matrices, e.g. milk, yoghurt, curd, cream, pudding or cheese. The extraction kits provide reliable results even from very difficult, heterogeneous or highly processed matrices with low and highly degraded DNA concentrations.
Automation is an important building block to standardize your molecular biology workflows in the laboratory and to obtain better consistency and reliability of your results even when working with heterogeneous, complex food matrices. MACHEREY-NAGEL's NucleoSpin 8/96 Food und NucleoMag DNA Food Extraction Kits are optimized solutions for automated nucleic acid extraction systems from a wide range of sample types.
Benefit from our many years of automation expertise
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DNA extraction from cartilage and bulk milk samples
In the following Application Note you can learn more how MACHEREY-NAGEL’s NucleoSpin 96 Tissue kit is used in an innovative technique to monitor bulk tank milk samples. The technique uses the NucleoSpin 96 Tissue kit for automated DNA extraction on a TECAN Fluent Automation Workstation. Purified DNA is used for genotyping to correspondence the genotype (=genetic map) of the herd animals and the presence of their DNA in the bulk milk sample (somatic cell count). The somatic cell count (SCC) can be used to detect infections in the animal herd at an early stage, thus providing a simple tool for herd management.
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