Composition and calcium status of acid whey from pasteurized, UHT‐treated and in‐bottle sterilized milks

Whey extracts were obtained from pasteurized, UHT-treated and inbottle sterilized milks. After acidic precipitation of casein the concentration of protein, NPN, lactose, lipid, calcium, magnesium and potassium was determined. Among the parameters examined, protein content was significantly reduced in the whey extracts from UHT-treated and in-bottle sterilized milks compared with that from pasteurized milk, while lactose content was increased. Calcium extracted in whey was at least 80% of total calcium of the milk. The total calcium to protein ratio of whey was increased as a function of the thermal treatment of milk, while ionic calcium was about 50% of total calcium in all whey extracts. In vitro protein digestibility was found to be significantly lower in whey from UHT-treated and in-bottle sterilized milks than in that from pasteurized milk. Parallel estimation of the percentage of ionic calcium and of the solubility of proteins in the pH range 2 ‐ 10 indicated that calcium was not involved in the pH-dependent solubility of proteins extracted in the whey, the extent of solubility being essentially a function of the thermal treatment of milk. The results suggest that calcium was not responsible for the formation of soluble protein macroaggregates with impaired digestibility that are present in whey from milk subjected to heat treatment of increasing intensity.