What is it about?
Whey is a source of components that are currently discarded or simply sent to a wastewater treatment plant. In this work we demonstrate that vacuum-assisted cryoconcentration allows the recovery of more than 70% of lactose contained in serum.
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Why is it important?
In Mediterranean countries, where the dairy sector (cheese making-oriented) has a marked traditional character, constraints in the utilization of fresh liquid whey are linked to high transportation costs of the bulky liquid and the low productivity of drying facilities. Thereby, an excellent alternative to reduce operating time, maintenance costs, and storage spaces, among others, is the reduction of the volume (and the weight) of fresh liquid whey. For this purpose, it is important to concentrate these solutions. Lactose is one of the most important components of whey, which is currently discarded or sent for purification. Therefore, any alternative that allows partial or total recovery may be of interest. Our study demonstrates that at least 70% of the original serum can be recovered, using a single cryoconcentration step. This suggests that vacuum-assisted BFC technology may be an interesting alternative for the recovery of lactose contained in whey.
Perspectives
Writing this article was a great pleasure as it has co-authors with whom I have had long standing collaborations. This article also lead to freeze concentration groups contacting me and ultimately to advance knowledge of this technology.
PhD. Prof. Ing. Eduardo Hernández
Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Vacuum-Assisted Block Freeze Concentration Studies in Cheese Whey and Its Potential in Lactose Recovery, Foods, February 2023, MDPI AG,
DOI: 10.3390/foods12040836.
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