The Effect of Milk Fat Globule Membrane (MFGM) Concentrate Addition on Ultrafiltered Goat Milk Coagulation and Fresh Cheese Rheology.

Milk fat globule membrane (MFGM) is a lipidic tri-layer structure rich in polar lipids and glycoproteins with promising health and technological benefits, which can be isolated from dairy industry by-products. The present research aims to understand the effect of the addition of an enriched MFGM concentrate on the milk coagulation process and on the structural behavior of ultrafiltered fresh cheeses (UFC). To this end, goat milk was ultrafiltered at 3 protein levels (10, 12, and 14%) and three MFGM contents were evaluated (0, 0.4, and 0.8%). UFC batches were manufactured and characterized using rheology. Coagulation kinetics revealed that ultrafiltration and MFGM addition increased the firmness of the cheese gel. Protein content was the primary factor contributing to gel firmness, and among the mixtures tested, those containing 14% proteins exhibited the highest elastic modulus values. Dynamic and static shear analyses showed that the combination of ultrafiltration and enriched MFGM concentrate supplementation had a synergic effect on cheese viscoelastic behavior. Loss factor (tan(δ)) may be a marker that can be monitored in cheesemaking when adding MFGM concentrate. Overall, MFGM concentrate would improve the rheological characteristics of fresh cheeses, being a promising ingredient for the food industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]