Abstract

SOLIS OBA, A.; SOLIS OBA, M.M.; TENIZA GARCIA, O.  and  MARTINEZ CASARES, R.M.. Proposal for taking advantage of whey. Revista bio ciencias [online]. 2023, vol.10, e1392.  Epub Feb 22, 2024. ISSN 2007-3380.  https://doi.org/10.15741/revbio.10.e1392.

For every 10 liters of milk, approximately one kilogram of cheese is obtained, and the rest is whey; the whey is rich in proteins, carbohydrates, and minerals and is usually discarded, causing contamination problems due to its high content of organic matter. Whey from a cheese manufacturer in Tlaxcala was ultra-filtered, obtaining a concentrated whey with 7.79 % proteins; the latter was then spray-dried, obtaining concentrated whey powder with 47 % protein; both products comply with the minimum protein indicated in the CXS 289-1995 standard (11 %), so they can be directly marketed or used for reprocessing. The average yield of Oaxaca cheese adding between 5 and 8 % of concentrated whey was 11.33 %, and with no concentrated whey was 11.41 %; in both cases, the consistency of the cheese was similar between them. It was also found that by adding 0.5 % concentrated whey powder to the cheese-making process, the yield increased by 4.16 % compared to the use of 1 % milk powder. By ultra-filtering the whey and drying the resulting fractions, products obtained that can be marketed by the company, in addition to being used in the production of Oaxaca cheese, which implies an economic benefit for the company. In addition to the environmental advantages due to the decrease in contamination due to the disposal of whey.

Keywords : milk; proteins; ultrafiltration; Oaxaca cheese.