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Bacillus cereus sensu lato ( B. cereus s.l. ) comprises mesophilic and psychrotolerant bacteria commonly found in natural environments as well as in organic and conventional milk. Due to their potential toxigenicity and antibiotic resistance, these bacteria pose a significant threat to consumer health. Organic milk production, which prohibits the use of antibiotics and artificial additives, may influence the composition of microbiota between milk types. This study aimed to compare the antibiotic resistance profiles and enterotoxic potential of B. cereus s.l. isolates from organic and conventional milk. The results indicate that, although conventional milk contains on average 3 times fewer B. cereus s.l. isolates, it has 10-15% more resistant isolates to selected beta-lactams, macrolides, and aminoglycosides. Regarding drug resistance, 21% of B. cereus s.l. isolates were multidrug-resistant, and as many as 42% were non-susceptible to two classes of antibiotics. Even among the sensitive isolates, bacteria from conventional milk exhibited on average 2.05 times higher MICs (minimal inhibitory concentrations) for beta-lactams, 1.49 times higher for erythromycin, 1.38 times higher for vancomycin, and 1.38 times higher for azithromycin. Antibiotic resistance was mostly associated with the origin of the isolates. These findings underscore the need for ongoing monitoring of antibiotic resistance and enterotoxicity among opportunistic B. cereus s.l. strains, which may pose challenges for public health and veterinary medicine. The results highlight that selective pressure associated with antibiotic use can drive resistance development in bacteria that are not the primary targets of antimicrobial therapy.

Agricultural practises such as conventional and organic farming can potentially affect the microbial communities in milk. In the present study, the bacterial diversity of milk was investigated using high-throughput sequencing on ten organic and ten conventional farms in the Azores, a region where milk production is largely based on year-round grazing systems. The microbiota of milk from both production systems was dominated by Bacillota, Pseudomonadota, Actinomycetota and Bacteroidota. The organic milk showed greater heterogeneity between farms, as reflected in the dispersion of diversity indices and the large variation in the relative abundances of the dominant genera. In contrast, conventionally produced milk showed a high degree of similarity within each season. In the conventional production system, the season also had a strong influence on the bacterial community, but this effect was not observed in the organic milk. The LEfSe analysis identified the genus Iamia as significantly (p < 0.05) more abundant in organic milk, but depending on the season, several other genera were identified that distinguished organic milk from conventionally produced milk. Of these, Bacillus, Iamia and Nocardioides were associated with the soil microbiota in organic farming., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. No conflict of interest exists., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Several studies have reported gross composition differences between organic and conventional milk; however, most studies have not considered other factors such as breed and diet ingredients, which are known to influence milk composition. Thus, this study aimed to provide a detailed characterization of Holstein-Friesian cow milk from organic (ORG) and conventional (CONV) herds with similar diet ingredients and in the same geographic area. Bulk milk samples (n = 225) of 12 ORG and 12 CONV farms were collected from September 2019 to August 2020. Farms were located in Northern Italy, included corn (meal, silage, or both) in the lactating diets, and had similar management conditions, but ORG herds spent a period on pasture. Factors affecting milk composition were tested using a linear mixed model, which included calendar month, farming system (ORG and CONV), and their interactions as fixed effects, and farm nested within farming system as random effect. Results showed that total fat, lactose, vitamin E, and AA did not significantly differ between farming systems. Total protein and casein contents were significantly lower in ORG than CONV herds, and somatic cell score (SCS) was greater in ORG than CONV. Among minerals, differences were observed for Fe, K, Mg, and S in some months, being lower in ORG than CONV for K, Mg, and S and greater or lower for Fe depending on the month. Among fatty acid (FA) groups, index, and ratios, only polyunsaturated FA and n-3 FA tended to be greater in ORG than CONV, and cis-FA were greater in ORG than CONV during October. Among the most abundant individual FA, only C16:1n-9 differed, being lower in ORG than CONV. The calendar month (and hence seasonal feed ration) was significant for milk gross composition, SCS, vitamin E, mineral profile (except for Mo, Sr, and Zn), AA profile, FA groups (except for medium-chain FA), FA index and ratios, and individual FA (except C16:0). We conclude that the overall milk composition was quite similar between the 2 farming systems. This could be related to the similarity of the selected farms, the Holstein-Friesian breed, and generally high level of intensity in both farming systems., (The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. and Fass Inc. on behalf of the American Dairy Science Association®. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).)

To differentiate organic milk (OM) from conventional milk (CM), an orthogonal projection to latent structure-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) model was constructed using δ 13 C, δ 15 N, δ 18 O, 51 elements and 35 fatty acids (FAs) as the variables. So far, most reported studies barely use three or more types of variables, but more variables could avoid one-sidedness and get stabler models. Our multivariate model combines geographical and nutritional parameters and displays better explanatory and predictive abilities (R 2 X = 0.647, R 2 Y = 0.962 and Q 2  = 0.821) than models based on fewer variables for differentiating OM and CM. In particular, δ 15 N, Se, δ 13 C, Eu, K and α-Linolenic acid (ALA) are found to be critical parameters for the discrimination of OM. These results show that the multivariate model based on stable isotopes, elements and FAs can be used to identify OM, and can potentially expand the global databases for quality and authenticity of milk., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Nowadays, there is a strong interest in analytical approaches for assessing organic farming practices. Here, we propose that oxylipins, a group of oxidised metabolites derived from various polyunsaturated fatty acids, could be promising biomarkers for organic milk assessment because their biosynthesis is modulated by both precursor fatty acid availability and physiological or pathological status. Thus, we determined 31 fatty acids, 53 triacylglycerols and 37 oxylipins in one hundred commercial UHT milks by chromatographic methods coupled to mass spectrometry. Of these, 52 milks were conventional (34 whole milk, 11 semi-skimmed milk and 7 skimmed milk) and 48 were organic (31 whole milk, 11 semi-skimmed milk and 6 skimmed milk). Several oxylipins (8-HEPE, 5-HEPE, 11-HEPE, 9-HEPE, 18-HEPE, 9-HOTrE, 13-HOTrE, 12,13-DiHODE and 15,16-DiHODE) could distinguish between organic and conventional milks. Within these oxylipins, arachidonic and linoleic acid derived do not correlate with their fatty acid precursors; therefore these oxylipins could be promising as not only diet-dependent biomarkers for organic milk assessment., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Evaluation of feed efficiency (FE; calculated as energy-corrected milk yield/dry matter intake) and milk nitrogen efficiency (MNE; calculated as milk N yield/N intake) is needed to help farmers make decisions regarding the economic and environmental sustainability of dairy farms. Our primary objective was to compare FE and MNE data obtained from studies conducted with organic versus conventional dairy cows. Specifically, 3 data sets were constructed to meet this goal: (1) the organic Jersey data set (ORG-JE) built with studies (n = 11) done at the University of New Hampshire Burley-Demeritt Organic Dairy Research Farm (Lee, NH), (2) the conventional Jersey data set (CON-JE) constructed using 19 experiments reported in the literature, and (3) the organic non-Jersey-breed (mostly Holstein, Swedish Red, and Norwegian Red) data set (ORG-NJE) created with 11 published studies. Comparisons were made between ORG-JE and CON-JE and between ORG-JE and ORG-NJE. A second objective was to compare the enteric methane (CH 4 ) emission data set from studies using organic Jerseys (n = 5) with those using conventional Jerseys (n = 4). Cows used in the ORG-JE data set had lower FE (-16%) and MNE (-15.5%) than cows used in the CON-JE counterpart, possibly because dry matter intake increased by an average of 10.4% in organic cows. Feed efficiency and MNE computed from cows belonging to the ORG-NJE data set were intermediate between ORG-JE and CON-JE. Measured CH 4 intensity (g/kg of energy-corrected milk) from cows in the ORG-JE CH 4 data set increased by 71% compared with that from cows in the CON-JE CH 4 data set. Estimated FE and enteric CH 4 emissions revealed that Wisconsin organic dairies with the heaviest reliance on forage sources and longest grazing time during the summer were the least feed efficient and emitted the greatest amount of CH 4 per kilogram of energy-corrected milk at the animal and whole-farm levels. Overall, the comparisons of FE, MNE, and enteric CH 4 emissions between organic and conventional dairies and within organic systems made in this symposium review should be interpreted cautiously because they are based on study means and small data sets. Research is needed to better characterize the performance, efficiency, profitability, and carbon emissions of forage-based organic dairies in the United States, including the fast-growing "grass-fed" segment, which relies exclusively on forage diets. The effect of large organic dairies on the economic and social sustainability of small and mid-size organic dairy operations nationwide also deserves further investigation., (Copyright © 2020 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Origin and quality identification in dairy products is an important issue and also an extremely challenging and complex experimental procedure. The objective of the present work was to compare the metabolite profile of the lipid fraction of organic and conventional bovine milk using NMR metabolomics analysis. ¹H-NMR and 1D TOCSY NMR methods of analysis were performed on extracted lipid fraction of lyophilized milk. For this purpose, 14 organic and 16 conventional retail milk samples were collected monthly, and 64 bulk-tank (58 conventional and 6 organics) milk samples were collected over a 14-month longitudinal study in Cyprus. Data were treated with multivariate methods (PCA, PLS-DA). Minor components were identified and quantified, and modification of the currently used equations is proposed. A significantly increased % content of conjugated (9- cis , 11- trans )18:2 linoleic acid (CLA), α-linolenic acid, linoleic acid, allylic protons and total unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) and decreased % content for caproleic acid were observed in the organic samples compared to the conventional ones. The present work confirms that lipid profile is affected by contrasting management system (organic vs. conventional), and supports the potential of NMR-based metabolomics for the rapid analysis and authentication of the milk from its lipid profile.

Background: The sunflower family of plants (Compositae = Asteraceae) is currently the most allergenic plant family worldwide, according to the number of sensitizing species. Secondary plant metabolites, including the allergenic sesquiterpene lactones present in Compositae plants, may occur in food items either through their presence in, or through contamination of, plant-based raw materials, or through their occurrence in products of non-plant origin., Objective: To analyse biodynamic, organic and conventional milk for the presence of the sesquiterpene lactone parthenolide., Methods: The content of parthenolide in the milk samples was investigated in dichloromethane extracts obtained by liquid-liquid extraction, followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses., Results: The concentration of parthenolide was 0.07 ±0.004 ppm in biodynamic milk, 0.05 ±0.002 ppm in organic milk, and not detectable (<0.002 ppm) in conventional milk., Conclusions: This is the first report of a potent contact allergen in milk. There seems to be an association between the time that the dairy cattle spend grazing and the amount of parthenolide detected. Although the concentration is low, it is estimated to be high enough to elicit dermatitis in the most sensitive persons by direct contact with the milk., (© 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Consumption of fluid milk has steadily declined over the last few decades. Understanding the attributes of fluid milk products that are attractive to specific consumer groups may provide a sound basis for education and marketing to encourage increased dairy consumption and reverse the downward trend. The objective of this study was to identify the attributes of fluid milk that specific consumer groups find attractive and attributes that suggest a higher purchase likelihood. An adaptive choice-based conjoint (ACBC) survey was designed to assess attributes of fluid milk. The ACBC survey included Kano, importance, labeling identification, and beliefs questions to determine the key attributes that dictated consumer purchase and consumption. Self-reported purchase habits and attitudes for organic food products were also collected. Attributes in the ACBC exercise included fat content, package type, shelf life, and label claims. Maximum difference scaling was used to rank the importance of attributes in fluid milk that affected purchase. Maximum difference scaling was also used to rank qualities and issues associated with organic milk that were most motivating for those who identified as organic milk consumers. Results were analyzed by univariate and multivariate statistics. A total of 1,163 fluid milk consumers completed the survey, and of those, 434 were regular purchasers of organic milk. The ideal fluid milk from conjoint analysis was 2% milkfat, organic, packaged in a plastic jug, conventionally pasteurized, and contained no additives or label claims. The belief that "organic milk is healthier" was the most important motivator for purchases of organic milk, followed by the beliefs that "organic milk production encourages ethical treatment of animals" and "organic milk production supports local farms and farmers." Conjoint importance scores of all fluid milk consumers showed that milkfat content was the most important attribute, followed by flavor, package size, and price. For all milk consumers, designation as organic was ranked as the 8th most important of 14 attributes. Evaluation of these results on both aggregate and individual levels suggest that fluid milk consumers are not a homogeneous consumer group and that underlying consumer groups are led to purchase decisions by specific product features or expectations., (Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

This study examined the monthly and seasonal variations of δ 13 C, δ 15 N, fatty acids (FAs), and vitamin E in organic milk (OM) and conventional milk (CM) collected in Korea during 2016-2017, discriminating OM authenticity with chemometric approaches. Compared to CM, the mean δ 13 C and δ 15 N values were lower in OM, whereas the mean α-tocopherol and nutritionally desirable FA contents were higher in OM. Furthermore, δ 13 C, δ 15 N, and FA contents vary significantly with the season in OM, whereas α-tocopherol does not show a specific seasonal trend in either OM or CM. Chemometric approaches provided reliable chemical markers, notably C18:3n-3, C18:2n-6, and δ 13 C bulk-milk , for accurate OM discrimination according to sampling season. Our findings elucidate milk nutritional quality issues and also provide valuable insight into the control of fraudulent OM labeling in Korea, with potential application in other countries., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Organic products are vulnerable to fraud due to their premium price. Analytical methodology helps to manage the risk of fraud and due to the miniaturization of equipment, tests may nowadays even be rapidly applied on-site. The current study aimed to evaluate portable near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in combination with chemometrics to distinguish organic milk from other types of milk, and compare its performance with benchtop NIRS and fatty acid profiling by gas chromatography. The sample set included 37 organic retail milks and 50 non-organic retail milks (of which 36 conventional and 14 green 'pasture' milks). Partial least squares discriminant analysis was performed to build classification models and kernel density estimation (KDE) functions were calculated to generate non-parametric distributions for samples' class probabilities. These distributions showed that portable NIRS was successful to distinguish organic milks from conventional milks, and so were benchtop NIRS and fatty acid profiling procedures. However, it was less successful when 'pasture' milks were considered too, since their patterns occasionally resembled those of the organic milk group. Fatty acid profiling was capable of distinguishing organic milks from both non-organic milks though, including the 'pasture' milks. This comparative study revealed that the classification performance of the portable NIRS for this application was similar to that of the benchtop NIRS., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The iodine content in milk depends on various factors, including the season, production system, and location of milk production. The aim of this study was 1) to obtain data on the iodine concentration of conventional and organically produced milk and according to seasons; 2) to compare these actual data with previous measurement data; 3) to study the influence of UHT treatment on the iodine content and 4) to estimate the contribution of organic and conventional milk to the consumer's iodine intake. A total of 110 samples of conventional and organic ultra-heat treated (UHT) whole milk were collected in the period between 1 May 2013 and 30 April 2014 from two large-scale companies, processing milk from two regions in Switzerland. The iodine concentration in organic milk (average 71 ± 25 μg/l) was significantly lower than in conventional milk (average 111 ± 26 μg/l) and varied between suppliers. Milk iodine concentration varied according to the month of collection in organic and conventionally produced milk, with lowest values between August and October (organic milk 42 μg/l; conventional milk 75 μg/l) and highest values in January (organic milk 99 μg/l; conventional milk 145 μg/l). Heat treatment did not influence iodine concentration. Since milk and dairy products are significant source of food-related iodine intake in Switzerland, consumers who prefer organic milk and dairy products are likely to have an inferior iodine status., (Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier GmbH.. All rights reserved.)

The aim of this study was to discover the unique volatile compositional traits of retail milk from different production systems. Forty-four retail milk samples were analyzed, including organic milk (n=10), conventional milk (n=14) and pasture milk (n=20) from winter (n=22) and summer (n=22). Proton transfer reaction quadrupole mass spectrometry (PTR-(Quad)MS) was utilized to obtain the mass-resolved fingerprints (76 masses per sample) of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Principal component analysis (PCA) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were performed to evaluate the differences between the groups. The production systems were characterized by six masses, while season showed larger differences, with twenty-two masses discriminating between the milks. For 2 masses, a significant interaction of systems and seasons was observed. The chemical formula of these VOC masses were tentatively identified by Proton Transfer Reaction Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometric (PTR-(ToF)MS). These results illustrate that the type of feed is reflected in the VOC composition of milks., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The aim of this study was to determine the nutritional value of organic milk in Poland, investigate the influence of diet on antioxidant capacity and degree of antioxidant protection (DAP), and to examine the effect of season on the bioactive properties of milk from organic farms. From 2014 to 2015, 820 milk samples were collected from 6 organic farms during indoor feeding season (IDS) and pasture feeding season (PS). Pasture feeding season + corn grain (PSCG) cows' daily ration during pasture feeding season was enriched with 4 kg a day of corn to improve dietary energy balance. Milk obtained during PS was found to have a higher fat content, slight but significantly lower protein content compared with milk from IDS. The study showed that the content of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) in milk fat was strongly linked to the concentration of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and, to a lesser extent, on the supply of MUFA. The IDS data (concentration of vitamin E, A, and β-carotene) showed the lowest values compared with the PS and PSCG groups. Total antioxidant status (TAS) and DAP showed an increasing trend in organic milk. PSCG was associated with highest level of DAP (9% higher than PS and 79% higher than IDS) and TAS (37% higher than PS and 79% higher than IDS). The results obtained show that supplementation of the basic ration with corn grain improved both TAS and DAP. The higher DAP and TAS value is responsible for product stability, considering the risk factor related to levels of cholesterol-oxide intake in humans., (© 2017 Institute of Food Technologists®.)

In the present study, 58 samples of milk were analyzed for the presence of aflatoxin M 1 (AFM 1 ). The samples were purchased during the period April-May 2013 in a random manner from local stores (supermarkets, small retail shops, small groceries, and specialized suppliers) located in the surrounding of Bologna (Italy). The commercial samples of milk were either organic (n = 22) or conventional (n = 36); fresh milk samples and UHT milk samples, whole milk samples, and partially skim milk samples were present in both the two considered categories. For the quantification of AFM 1 in milk, the extraction-purification technique based on the use of immunoaffinity columns was adopted and analyses were performed using HPLC-FD. AFM 1 was detected in 35 samples, 11 from organic production and 24 from conventional production. No statistically (P > 0.05) significant differences were observed in the concentration of AFM 1 in the two categories of product. The levels of contamination found in the positive samples ranged between 0.009 and 0.026 ng mL -1 . No sample exceeded the limit defined at community level for AFM 1 in milk (0.05 μg kg -1 ). This demonstrates the effectiveness of the checks before the placing on the market of these food products. Thus, the "aflatoxins" problem that characterized the summer of 2012 does not seem to have had effect on the contamination level of the considered milk samples.

The increased sales of organically produced food create a strong need for analytical methods, which could authenticate organic and conventional products. Combined chemometric analysis of (1)H NMR-, (13)C NMR-spectroscopy data, stable-isotope data (IRMS) and α-linolenic acid content (gas chromatography) was used to differentiate organic and conventional milk. In total 85 raw, pasteurized and ultra-heat treated (UHT) milk samples (52 organic and 33 conventional) were collected between August 2013 and May 2014. The carbon isotope ratios of milk protein and milk fat as well as the α-linolenic acid content of these samples were determined. Additionally, the milk fat was analyzed by (1)H and (13)C NMR spectroscopy. The chemometric analysis of combined data (IRMS, GC, NMR) resulted in more precise authentication of German raw and retail milk with a considerably increased classification rate of 95% compared to 81% for NMR and 90% for IRMS using linear discriminate analysis., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Intensification of organic dairy production leads to the question of whether the implementation of intensive feeding incorporating maize silage and concentrates is altering milk quality. Therefore the fatty acid (FA) and antioxidant (AO) profiles of milk on 24 farms divided into four system groups in three replications (n = 71) during the outdoor period were analyzed. In this system comparison, a differentiation of the system groups and the effects of the main system factors 'intensification level' (high-input versus low-input) and 'origin' (organic versus conventional) were evaluated in a multivariate statistical approach., Results: Consistent differentiation of milk from the system groups due to feeding-related impacts was possible in general and on the basis of 15 markers. The prediction of the main system factors was based on four or five markers. The prediction of 'intensification level' was based mainly on CLA c9,t11 and C18:1 t11, whereas that of 'origin' was based on n-3 PUFA., Conclusion: It was possible to demonstrate consistent differences in the FA and AO profiles of organic and standard conventional milk samples. Highest concentrations of nutritionally beneficial compounds were found in the low-input organic system. Adapted grass-based feeding strategies including pasture offer the potential to produce a distinguishable organic milk product quality., (© 2014 Society of Chemical Industry.)

Consumer perception of organic cow milk is associated with the assumption that organic milk differs from conventionally produced milk. The value associated with this difference justifies the premium retail price for organic milk. It includes the perceptions that organic dairy farming is kinder to the environment, animals, and people; that organic milk products are produced without the use of antibiotics, added hormones, synthetic chemicals, and genetic modification; and that they may have potential benefits for human health. Controlled studies investigating whether differences exist between organic and conventionally produced milk have so far been largely equivocal due principally to the complexity of the research question and the number of factors that can influence milk composition. A main complication is that farming practices and their effects differ depending on country, region, year, and season between and within organic and conventional systems. Factors influencing milk composition (e.g., diet, breed, and stage of lactation) have been studied individually, whereas interactions between multiple factors have been largely ignored. Studies that fail to consider that factors other than the farming system (organic vs. conventional) could have caused or contributed to the reported differences in milk composition make it impossible to determine whether a system-related difference exists between organic and conventional milk. Milk fatty acid composition has been a central research area when comparing organic and conventional milk largely because the milk fatty acid profile responds rapidly and is very sensitive to changes in diet. Consequently, the effect of farming practices (high input vs. low input) rather than farming system (organic vs. conventional) determines milk fatty acid profile, and similar results are seen between low-input organic and low-input conventional milks. This confounds our ability to develop an analytical method to distinguish organic from conventionally produced milk and provide product verification. Lack of research on interactions between several influential factors and differences in trial complexity and consistency between studies (e.g., sampling period, sample size, reporting of experimental conditions) complicate data interpretation and prevent us from making unequivocal conclusions. The first part of this review provides a detailed summary of individual factors known to influence milk composition. The second part presents an overview of studies that have compared organic and conventional milk and discusses their findings within the framework of the various factors presented in part one., (Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The objective of this study was to compare the phospholipid content of conventional milk with that of organic milk and milk rich in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). The membrane enclosing the fat globules of milk is composed, in part, of phospholipids, which have properties of interest for the development of so-called functional foods and technologically novel ingredients. They include phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylserine (PS), and the sphingophospholipid sphingomyelin (SM). Milk from organically managed cows contains higher levels of vitamins, antioxidants, and unsaturated fatty acids than conventionally produced milk, but we know of no study with analogous comparisons of major phospholipid contents. In addition, the use of polyunsaturated-lipid-rich feed supplement (extruded linseed) has been reported to increase the phospholipid content of milk. Because supplementation with linseed and increased unsaturated fatty acid content are the main dietary modifications used for production of CLA-rich milk, we investigated whether these modifications would lead to this milk having higher phospholipid content. We used HPLC with evaporative light scattering detection to determine PE, PI, PC, PS, and SM contents in 16 samples of organic milk and 8 samples of CLA-rich milk, in each case together with matching reference samples of conventionally produced milk taken on the same days and in the same geographical areas as the organic and CLA-rich samples. Compared with conventional milk and milk fat, organic milk and milk fat had significantly higher levels of all the phospholipids studied. This is attributable to the differences between the 2 systems of milk production, among which the most influential are probably differences in diet and physical exercise. The CLA-rich milk fat had significantly higher levels of PI, PS, and PC than conventional milk fat, which is also attributed to dietary differences: rations for CLA-rich milk production included linseed supplement and contained less maize meal than conventional rations and a greater proportion of unsaturated fatty acids and salts. The relative proportions of the phospholipids studied were similar in all 3 types of milk, descending in the order PE>(PC, SM)>PS>PI, with PC being slightly more abundant than SM in organic milk and vice versa in CLA-rich milk., (Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Natural stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen ((12)C, (13)C, (14)N, (15)N) have abundances unique to each living creature. Therefore, measurement of the stable isotope ratio of carbon and nitrogen (δ(13)C=(13)C/(12)C, δ(15)N=(15)N/(14)N) in milk provides a reliable method to determine organic milk (OM) authenticity. In the present study, the mean δ(13)C value of OM was higher than that of conventional milk (CM), whereas the mean δ(15)N value of OM was lower than that of CM; nonetheless both δ(13)C and δ(15)N values were statistically different for the OM and CM (P<0.05). Furthermore, the values of δ(13)C and δ(15)N were found to differ statistically with the collection date and the milk brand (P<0.05). The combination of δ(13)C and δ(15)N values was more effective than either value alone in distinguishing between OM and CM. The results of the present study, which is based on preliminary data from a limited sample size and sampling period, could be highly valuable and helpful for consumers, the food industry, and/or government regulatory agencies as it can prevent fraudulent labelling of organic food. Further studies include additional analyses of other milk brands and analyses over longer time periods in order to accurately determine OM authenticity using stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen., (Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Over the past decade, a growing interest of consumers in the consumption of organic milk has been recognized, mostly because of its positive effect on human health, besides other various positive effects. The main goal of organic milk production is to bring agricultural production in close alignment with the requirements of a sustainable system. Human capital in organic farming is an important factor as it significantly influences production and financial results. As an important factor in the production, socio-economic characteristics of producers considerably determine possibilities of the future development of this system of production in a certain country. Focusing on the aspect of human capital, this paper examines the possibilities of the development of organic agricultural production in the Republic of Serbia. The research has been conducted on the territory of Serbia on individual farms which are certified for organic farming. Following the findings, the authors conclude that human capital in organic milk production of the Republic of Serbia does not represent a limiting factor in the future development of this system and that human capital in terms of learning and education, experience and expertise, innovation and creativity, and sources of knowledge has a positive relationship with the business performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates a milk price relationship between organic and conventional milk in Austria. We employ a vector error correction model, Johansen co-integration, and threshold co-integration test to establish whether organic and conventional milk markets are integrated and have asymmetric price relationships. Our results show no existence of threshold co-integration compared to linear co-integration. Our findings also present a price leadership of organic on conventional milk in a long-run. In a short-run, our results indicate while organic milk price has a positive effect on conventional milk price, conventional milk price does not have a significant effect on conventional one price. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While there is ample evidence on consumers' perceptions and willingness to pay (WTP) for organic food in developed markets, empirical evidence for transition economies is scarce. This paper is based on a survey of 608 Russian consumers that combined a questionnaire with a contingent valuation approach to investigate the impact of perceptions and trust on consumers' WTP for certified organic, uncertified all‐natural and conventional milk, respectively. A between‐subject treatment design was used to analyse how consumers' WTP responds to different information treatments. Our results suggest that most participants connect health benefits with the consumption of organic food, followed by slightly fewer respondents connecting organic production with environmental benefits. In the case of animal welfare benefits, the picture is less clear, as only 46% of respondents indicated that they agree that organic livestock production is associated with animal welfare benefits. Concerning the trust in farmer's adherence to organic standards, a substantially higher share of respondents expressed trust in producers from the European Union versus their Russian counterparts. About 51% of respondents exhibited a positive WTP for organic milk in comparison to conventional milk. At the same time, there is no statistically significant difference in respondents' WTP between all‐natural and organic milk. This similarity suggests that respondents do not seem to differentiate between uncertified all‐natural milk and certified organic milk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of mid-infrared (MIR; 5000–900 cm−1) and visible/near-infrared (Vis/NIR; 400–2500 nm) spectroscopy to discriminate organic (ORG) from conventional (CONV) bulk milk. Samples (n = 225) from 24 farms (ORG, n = 12; CONV, n = 12) located in the same area, mainly rearing Holstein-Friesian cows, under similar management conditions, except for ORG livestock spending a period of time on pasture, were collected from September 2019 to August 2020. Chemical composition of the lactation ration was similar between groups. Mid-infrared and Vis/NIR spectrum of each sample were collected. Principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were done using R software. For the PLS-DA, records were divided in a train set (8 farms/group) and a test set (4 farms/group), and only wavelengths with VIP >1 were retained. The PCA was not able to discriminate both groups. The PLS-DA revealed an accuracy of the model in the test set of 54.1% and 62.9%, for MIR and Vis/NIR, respectively. In conclusion, both infrared regions performed similarly, and the moderate accuracy of the PLS-DA could be related to the similarity of the selected farms between both categories. Infrared spectra from bulk milk samples of organic and conventional farms were similar. Low accuracy using partial least squares-discriminant analysis. Both MIR and Vis/NIR infrared regions performed similarly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, new formula milk (FM) products based on milk from farms that strictly adhere to the "organic farming" practices became available. However, little is known about the differences in nutritional profile of these organic formulae with respect to traditional ones. We comprehensively evaluated the metabolite profiles of FM with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-based metabolomic analysis. Five commercial brands of organic and nonorganic formula liquid milk for infants (0–12 months) and toddlers (1–3 years) were analyzed, together with human milk (HM) samples. Proton NMR (1H NMR) spectroscopy mapped molecular characteristics of FM linked to different production techniques, and identified differences between FM and HM samples. We performed a metabolic fingerprint analysis using multivariate and univariate statistical techniques. A clear distinction is found among different commercial brands of the FM samples. In addition, several differences in metabolomic profiles of FM have been found in comparison with HM for the first time. Notably, it was possible to identify, both in the formulations for toddlers and for infants, metabolites that vary in concentration between the formulae produced with milk obtained according to organic farming techniques, and those produced using nonorganic milk. In particular, organic and nonorganic formulations are differentiated by the levels of glucose, methionine, o-phosphocholine, butyrate, hippurate, creatine, and dimethyl sulfone. Importantly, the HM appeared to differ from both organic and nonorganic brands in a context of metabolites. These findings inform efforts to design FM in ways that closely mimic HM, and guide research to differentiate organic and traditional FM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We contribute to the existing literature on factors influencing sustainable product consumption behavior by (a) employing actual supermarket sales data from over 300 outlets in England covering up to 18 million customers, and by (b) examining two products that can both be labeled as sustainable but have very different market positions: organic milk as a typical niche product, and free‐range eggs which (based on market share) can be seen as a mainstream product. Our study has looked into the influence of factors such as deprivation and race, which have not previously been looked into. The results partially confirm previous research, which is mostly based on self‐reported behavior, identifying both price and deprived catchment areas as barriers but green attitudes as a facilitator while more affluent people purchase organic milk. What is new from our work is that convenience stores have a negative influence and for organic milk, older families and those aged 25–44 years have a positive influence. Crucially, we identify clear differences between purchasing behaviors regarding niche and mainstream products in our analysis: while purchases of organic milk can be predicted by a wide range of sociodemographic factors, this is not the case for free‐range eggs. Here, besides price and green attitudes, there are no other influences on behavior. The results of our study can therefore provide fresh insight into the debate around recent attempts to mainstream sustainable product consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consumer demand for milk and meat from grass-fed cattle is growing, driven mostly by perceived health benefits and concerns about animal welfare. In a U. S.-wide study of 1,163 milk samples collected over 3 years, we quantified the fatty acid profile in milk from cows fed a nearly 100% forage-based diet (grassmilk) and compared it to profiles from a similar nationwide study of milk from cows under conventional and organic management. We also explored how much the observed differences might help reverse the large changes in fatty acid intakes that have occurred in the United States over the last century. Key features of the fatty acid profile of milk fat include its omega-6/omega-3 ratio (lower is desirable), and amounts of total omega-3, conjugated linoleic acid, and long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. For each, we find that grassmilk is markedly different than both organic and conventional milk. The omega-6/omega-3 ratios were, respectively, 0.95, 2.28, and 5.77 in grassmilk, organic, and conventional milk; total omega-3 levels were 0.049, 0.032, and 0.020 g/100 g milk; total conjugated linoleic acid levels were 0.043, 0.023, and 0.019 g/100 g milk; and eicosapentaenoic acid levels were 0.0036, 0.0033, and 0.0025 g/100 g milk. Because of often high per-capita dairy consumption relative to most other sources of omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid, these differences in grassmilk can help restore a historical balance of fatty acids and potentially reduce the risk of cardiovascular and other metabolic diseases. Although oily fish have superior concentrations of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, most fish have low levels of α-linolenic acid (the major omega-3), and an omega-6/omega-3 ratio near 7. Moreover, fish is not consumed regularly, or at all, by ~70% of the U. S. population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The consumption of organic milk is increasing rapidly. However, the behaviour of organic milk consumers is still not enough investigated. The purpose of this study was to determine variables which influence the attitude towards organic milk consumption, as well as variables which influence the buying intention of organic milk in Republic of Macedonia. Thereat, factors such as positive opinion toward organic milk and food related lifestyle, as well as level of trust in organic food label, objective knowledge and gender of respondents showed to have a significant influence on organic milk buying intention. More precisely, a significant and positive influence on buying intention of organic milk was observed considering the belief in positive aspects of organic milk, subjective knowledge, objective knowledge, and attitude towards buying organic milk. According to the results of this study recommendations for marketing practice and especially for communication policy might be created. Communication directed to female population should use classic advertising based on functional information, while the one directed to male population should use more emotional advertising. By using classic advertising education of consumers should be performed in order to promote benefits of organic milk in regards to conventional milk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, organic dairy products are gaining in popularity because of the increasing consumer awareness of food quality and safety. The premium price of organic milk (OM) results in frequent milk adulteration, causing global concern. Hence, there is a growing interest in analytical methods for assessing the authenticity of OM. Here, we investigated the use of fatty acid (FA) profile combined with chemometric approaches to verify OM authenticity at the farm and retail levels. A total of 47 FAs in 119 cow milk samples (80 raw milk and 39 retail milk) were detected and quantified by GC–MS/FID. Results indicate that OM contains a distinct and more healthy FA profile at both farm and retail levels. Orthogonal partial least square discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) models based on FA were developed to verify OM and provided good quality (R2X = 0.828, Q2 = 0.716 for raw milk and R2X = 0.657, Q2 = 0.704 for retail milk). The models built on raw and retail milk showed high accuracy at 94.6% and 97.4%. C18:1 n –6 c and C18:2 n– 6 c were identified as the critical markers of the organic farm and retail milk. This study provides a reliable approach for preventing fraud of OM. [Display omitted] • A comprehensive FA profile in organic & convention milk was analyzed by GC–MS/FID. • Organic milk authentication of five regions & three climate zones was determined. • OPLS-DA models were created to verify organic milk with a high accuracy above 95%. • C18:1 n –6 c and C18:2 n –6 c are the key markers of the organic farm and retail milk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Dietary composition and husbandry practices largely determine essential trace element status and toxic element exposure of livestock, and consequently their concentrations in animal products. This study evaluates the main essential trace (Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, I, Mn, Mo, Ni, Se and Zn) and toxic (As, Cd, Hg and Pb) element concentrations in milk from organic and conventional farms in NW Spain (n =50). Milk samples were acid digested and analyzed by ICP-MS. Essential trace element concentrations in organic milk were significantly lower compared to conventional milk, this was especially evident for elements that are routinely supplemented at high concentrations in the conventional concentrate feed: Cu (41.0 and 68.9μg/L in organic and conventional milk, respectively), Zn (3326 and 3933μg/L), I (78 and 265μg/L) and Se (9.4 and 19.2μg/L). Toxic metal concentrations in milk were in general very low and no statistically significant differences were observed between organic and conventional milk. In addition, the mineral content of organic milk showed a seasonal pattern, the significantly higher As (65%) and Fe (13%) concentrations found in the winter sampling possibly being related to a higher consumption of concentration feed and soil ingestion when grazing. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In order to demonstrate the safety of organic milk produced in Tecpatan, Chiapas, Mexico, we investigated the presence of aflatoxin M1 by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The results showed that 23.3% of the samples exceeded the maximum residue limit proposed by the Mexican regulation of 0.5 μg kg-1, while 62.7% exceeded the value of 0.05 μg kg-1 of the EU. The mean values of aflatoxin M1 in milk during the dry and rainy seasons were 3.53 ± 0.55 μg kg-1 and 0.17 ± 0.13 μg kg-1 respectively. The results confirmed that organic products can be exposed to residues and contaminants when not in compliance with good agricultural practices, affecting their safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The population of the Spanish archipelago of the Canary Islands has been studied in depth regarding its levels of contamination by organochlorine pesticides (OCs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Foodstuffs of animal origin, such as milk, are prominent contributors to the body burden of these contaminants. As this population presents one of the highest milk-intake in Spain and Europe, we evaluated the level of OCs and PCBs in 26 commercially available brands of milk (16 conventional and 10 organic brands) present in the market of these Islands, in order to estimate the relevance of milk as a source of these chemicals for the Canary population. Our findings showed that hexachlorobenzene, trans-chlordane, and PCB153 were present in almost all the samples with independence of the type of milk. For both types of milks, the concentration of OCs was very low, showing organic milks lower levels than conventional ones. As a consequence, the estimated daily intake for OCs was lower than the tolerable daily intake (TDI) established by International Agencies. The levels of PCBs in milk were also found to be very low, but, in this case, the situation was the opposite: there were higher levels of PCBs in organic than in conventional brands of milk. Unexpectedly, levels of dioxin-like PCBs (DL-PCBs) reached values higher than 25pg WHO-TEQ g−1 fat in percentile 75 for both types of milk indicating the existence of a number of brands of milk highly contaminated by these toxicants. Consequently, the population who consume the most contaminated milk brands could have estimated daily intakes well above the recommended TDI (2pg WHO-TEQ kg−1 b.w.d−1) established by European Union Authorities. These results are of concern if we consider the well known adverse health effects exerted by dioxin-like compounds. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Milk samples from organic and conventionally raised cows differ in the content of specific fatty acids due to the different feed used. Several marker fatty acids (phytanic acid, α-linolenic acid (18:3 n- 3), eicosapentaenoic acid (20: 5n- 3)) have been proposed to distinguish both types of dairy agriculture. Owing to the higher amount of grass in the feed of organic cows, the concentrations of these fatty acids are usually higher than in conventional milk. In this study, we were interested to determine the day-to-day fluctuation of these and further fatty acids in milk of cows. For this purpose, milk samples from an organic and a conventionally raised cow taken on subsequent days were analyzed for potential marker fatty acids for the authentication of organic milk. An organic cow was milked daily in the morning over a period of 30 days while milk of a conventional cow was collected for 15 days in the morning and evening. Based on milk lipids, no differences were found between morning and evening milk. However, the concentrations of phytanic acid, α-linolenic acid (18:3 n- 3), eicosapentaenoic acid (20: 5n- 3) were ~twofold higher in organic milk fat than in conventional samples. The day-to-day fluctuations were small, and the lowest value in organic milk was generally higher than the highest value in conventional milk. Phytanic acid is interesting as it will not be influenced by supplementation of n- 3 fatty acids in the fodder of conventional cows. Pristanic acid was also ~40% higher in organic milk fat, but five conventional samples reached the lowest value in organic milk. Significantly higher concentrations in organic milk fat were also observed for 12-methyltridecanoic acid (i14:0) and 16-methylheptadecanoic acid (i18:0) as well as for vaccenic acid (18:1 n- 7tr). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Production labeling is a common approach for differentiating otherwise similar products in the marketplace. While these labels may convey positive messages to consumers about the new product, they may simultaneously stigmatize the conventionally produced product by highlighting perceived problems. The net economic result for producers can be negative since consumers may decrease their willingness to pay for the conventional product that dominates the market, while the new product has a relatively small market share. This experimental research identifies this stigma effect in the case of milk, where the introduction of rBST-free and organic milk reduces consumers’ willingness to purchase conventional milk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using actual retail purchases from the 2006 Nielsen Homescan panel data, we estimate a hedonic model on price premiums and discounts associated with household characteristics, market factors, and product attributes focusing on the organic attribute for fluid milk. The organic attribute carries a significant price premium, which is largest of all product attributes considered in this study. Further, additional price variations among organic milk are observed for differences in fat content, container size and branding. Specifically, the results suggest that organic price premiums for half-gallon milk range from $1.23 for whole private label organic milk (60-68% above conventional counterpart) to $1.86 for nonfat/skim-branded organic milk (89-109% above conventional counterpart). The study also found that milk sold in a discount store (i.e., supercenter or club warehouse) was price 13 cents per half gallon, or 7.4%, below milk sold through other venues, and that milk on sale was priced 26 cents per half gallon, or 14.3%, less than the regular average price. Although household characteristics exert little influence on price relative to product attributes and market factors, the study does find that unmarried households and those with children under six pay slightly higher prices for milk, possibly due to time constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Subjective perceptions about a product affect consumer choice. Accordingly, acquiring the underlying demand characteristics that consumers find desirable is vital for firms planning future marketing strategies. However, the extent to which product-specific perceptions affect consumer choice is poorly understood. New agricultural standards for organic livestock were introduced in Japan in November 2005 and are expected to influence the market significantly. Choice modeling (CM) is used to explore how consumers evaluate the latent demands and conventional attributes (or tangible values) of organic milk. The results suggest that latent demands, along with socioeconomic characteristics and conventional attributes, provide strong incentives for consumers to move from the purchase of conventional milk to organic milk. The analysis indicates that latent demands reflecting the safeness of organic milk, the better taste of organic milk, the image of environmental friendliness in the production process, and the image of the health and comfort of the cows are important factors that influence consumers' purchasing decisions. However, each specific factor has a corresponding conventional tangible attribute that needs to be targeted in marketing strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Milk samples coming from the central zone of Mexico (9 raw, 20 ultrapasteurized (UHT) and 15 organic) were surveyed for determining the presence of aflatoxin M1 using a solid phase extraction column (C18), prederivatization with trifluoracetic acid and liquid chromatography coupled to a fluorescence detector. Analytical results showed that the 59% of the samples was contaminated with aflatoxin M1 and all the cases were above the maximum level of 0.05 µg/Kg set by the European regulations for aflatoxin M1 in liquid milk. The medians of aflatoxin M1 found in raw, ultrapasteurized and organic milk samples were 16.21; 16.1 and 23.1 µg/Kg respectively. The percentage of samples above the maximum limit of residual was smaller in organic milk production (20%) compared with the raw and ultrapasteurized milks that were respectively above the 50 and 60%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]