FAO ANIMAL PRODUCTION AND HEALTH PAPER 85
The technology of traditional milk products in developing countries
|
FAO ANIMAL PRODUCTION AND HEALTH PAPER 85 The technology of traditional milk products in developing countries |
The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
M-26
ISBN 92-5-102899-0
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Applications for such permission, with a statement of the purpose and extent of the reproduction, should be addressed to the Director, Publications Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Via delle Terme di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy.
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 1990
©FAO
Hyperlinks to non-FAO Internet sites do not imply any official endorsement of or responsibility for the opinions, ideas, data or products presented at these locations, or guarantee the validity of the information provided. The sole purpose of links to non-FAO sites is to indicate further information available on related topics.
PART A
IMPORTANCE, TECHNOLOGY AND ECONOMICS OF TRADITIONAL MILK PRODUCTS
TABLES
CHARACTERISTICS AND MANUFACTURING TECHNIQUES OF TRADITIONAL MILK PRODUCTS
This publication attempts to bring together recent information and the technology of traditional milk products in developing countries.
It is based on two sources of information:
Contributions by 6 authors from the different regions of developing countries.
Responses to questionnaires circulated by FAO to one hundred countries in 1987 and 1988.
The following authors prepared manuscripts relating to the technology of traditional products in their respective regions:
Their contributions were collated by R.J.M. Crawford (Scotland), edited by staff members of the Meat and Dairy Service of FAO and constitute Part A.
The replies to the questionnaires were edited and grouped as set out in Part B of this publication by P. Coppé, APO, Meat and Dairy Service of FAO. It must be stressed that the replies to the questionnaires were not always complete and that it was not possible for FAO to check the accuracy of certain details. This section must, therefore, be viewed as a first attempt to provide up-to-date information on the technology of a comprehensive range of traditional dairy products in developing countries. Future studies will refine these data and FAO would welcome contributions from readers on specific products or groups of products to assist in making the data as comprehensive and accurate as possible.
Milk as a raw material. Traditional milk products are prepared from milk from several species:- indigenous cattle and exotic dairy breeds, buffalo, sheep, goats, yaks and camel. The role of the individual species varies dramatically from region to region and within countries of the same region.
The composition of milk of different species has important influences on the yield of traditional milk products e.g. high fat-producing species are of major importance in countries where ghee is an important product.
The availability of milk for the preparation of traditional milk products depends not only on the total amount of milk produced in a country but also on how much of the milk is dispatched to industrial dairy factories and how much is retained by the milk producer for the direct use of the household, or for the preparation of milk products for local sale, or for use in calf rearing.
Countries with proportionally the highest quantities of milk being used for preparation of traditional milk products on the producer's farm or household, or local small processing units tend to have the less well developed dairy industry. It should be recognised that factors such as the standard of road and rail links between the milk-producing areas and the urban areas is of importance in determining how milk is utilised. Animal breeding and feeding pose major problems to the small milk producer where traditional milk products are important and technical support services are commonly absent or insufficient.
Milking conditions and hygiene. The general standard of hygiene applied to milk production in developing countries is poor and as a result the quality of milk is poor.
Thorough cleaning and disinfection of the utensils used for milk and milk processing are essential for the production of good quality milk but few of the small milk producers can practice modern methods of cleansing. The practice of smoking milk vessels is common in eastern Africa and appears to have value in disinfecting the utensils as well as contributing a smoky flavour to milk products.
Hand milking is the almost universal practice in the countries reviewed.
Some countries have introduced payment schemes intended to reward the producer who supplies milk of good hygienic quality, but in general, farmers have insufficient knowledge of, and skill in clean milk production.
It must be recognised that many of the small farmers produce milk under exceedingly difficult climatic conditions.
Of major concern is the lack of veterinary control of milk-producing animals in many countries which when linked with the direct use of raw milk for milk products results in conditions which may cause milk-borne disease and food poisoning or at least damage the reputation of traditional milk products.
Prevention, or limitation of the spoilage of milk is based on boiling, or on souring, simple condensing with sugar addition or immediate processing into traditional milk products.
Level of processing. Preparation of traditional milk products is a household operation in many of the developing dairy industries. In southern and eastern Africa there is no record to show that milk processing has ever been organised at the community level as is the case with the processing of cereals.
Producer cooperatives are being formed in Africa and elsewhere. Dairy cooperatives in India perform the procurement of milk of suitable quality in a condition fit for processing. Milk is mostly produced in small quantities of two to four litres by small and marginal farmers in innumerable and widely scattered villages.
The proportion of milk retained on individual farms in the southcone countries of Latin America ranges from ten per cent in the case of Argentina - a dairy exporting country applying modern technology in its industrial dairy sector - to eighty per cent in the case of Paraguay. Small-scale manufacture of traditional products is of little importance in Argentina whereas in Paraguay much of the individual's supply of milk products is derived from traditional milk products made in small units. Projects are being undertaken in several countries to improve small-scale manufacture of traditional milk products but much more must be done worldwide to strengthen the role of this important sector of the agricultural industry. Traditional milk products produced on a small scale are in most cases capable of being adapted to medium and large-scale methods.
Technologies of the main categories of traditional milk products. Information is provided on traditional milk products under four categories:- fermented milks, butter and ghee, cheeses, and other milk-based products. Fermentation of milk to control the growth of spoilage bacteria and some forms of pathogens is the most common aspect of technology in the preparation of traditional milk products. The use of natural controlled fermentation is seen in the preparation of products such as dahi in the Indian sub-continent, laban in Syria, irgo in Ethiopia and other soured milk in southern and eastern Africa. These soured milks, as well as being liquid milk products in their own right, are the basis for the production of unsalted butter, ghee (or butteroil) and curd cheese in the household, the local village processing unit or the industrial scale dairy factory. Much of Africa has no tradition of cheesemaking based on coagulation of casein. In the Indian sub-continent, organic acids are used to precipitate milk proteins in the formation of the base material for sweets. In the southcone countries of Latin America cheesemaking is an important sector of the dairy industry and traditional cheese types based on rennet coagulation of milk, and in most cases bearing a similarity to European varieties, are made on a small-scale in farms and by modern methods in dairy factories.
The use of heat to concentrate and preserve milk is practised widely and is the basis of a wide range of traditional milk products, particularly in the Indian sub-continent and Latin America.
Economic importance of traditional milk products. Livestock farming in general and milk and milk products in particular play an important socio-economic role in all of the countries reviewed. The extent of dependence of the farmer on traditional milk products varies from country to country and within countries. Climate, development of roads and transport within a country, and the level of industrial milk processing are some of the factors in determining how important these products are.
In addition to the actual value of the product to the farmer, the country and the region, the importance of work in small-scale milk processing in rural areas is stressed.
The agricultural industry is economically very important for all of the countries reviewed and recommendations are made for policies which will develop traditional dairy products in value and quality.
Nutritional importance of traditional milk products in the national diet. The importance of traditional milk products in the diet is related to the overall availability of milk to the population of each country, and within a country to the consumption of milk and milk products in rural and urban areas.
In many countries milk consumption is well below the requirement for a balanced diet as recommended by FAO.
Since much of the preparation of traditional milk products takes place in rural areas - many of them isolated by lack of transport - their importance from a nutritional point of view is greater for the local population than for that of the urban areas.
Nevertheless, traditional milk products such as butter and ghee and milk protein-based foods contribute much of the dietary requirements of national populations. Contributions examine the role of traditional milk products in a country or regional context.
Organization of marketing. Traditional milk products reach the consumer through many different marketing channels. In southern and eastern Africa only a small fraction of the milk is marketed by commercial enterprises and nearly all traditionally prepared milk products are marketed through informal marketing channels. In many cases there is no middleman between the producer and the consumer. Variations from this simple procedure to sales to intermediaries of dairy cooperatives and supermarkets exist in many countries. Marketing may also be undertaken by government agencies. The state of marketing and sales is discussed in relation to the future development of traditional milk products from several viewpoints including the improvement in quality.
General discussion, summary and conclusions. There is general accord that traditional milk products are of great importance to all of the countries and regions surveyed. Not only when the products are prepared and sold by empirical methods in a rural, semi-urban or urban location but also where the scale and technology of production has moved on to the industrial dairy sector and associated marketing and distribution practices apply.
The characteristics and the technology which are described suggest that in developing countries traditional milk products are made in general under primitive conditions which result in low yields and also in poor quality products. Suggestions for the development of traditional milk products start with the need for improved veterinary control of cattle to ensure a safe milk supply; programmes for improved hygiene practices for milk production; establishment of village-based milk processing units; improvements in processing equipment to achieve better efficiency and product quality; training of milk producers and milk processors to develop their knowledge and skills; technical support for this sector of livestock farming.
Many contributions stress the need for national and international policies which take account of the value and importance of the traditional milk product sector of the dairy industry and recommend that this sector should be taken account of in future policies as appropriate.