article · Food Production Processing and Nutrition
Camel milk is a vital nutritional resource for millions living in arid and semi-arid regions, where it is traditionally consumed raw or naturally fermented. Converting it into processed dairy items presents significant technical hurdles, as products often fail to match the quality of those derived from cow milk. The underlying difficulties stem from unique compositional and structural traits, including the absence of beta-lactoglobulin, low kappa-casein, high proportions of beta-casein, larger casein micelles, and smaller fat globules. Consequently, standard bovine processing methods fail, causing issues such as poor heat stability during ultra-high temperature processing, weak curd formation, impaired rennet coagulation, extended fermentation periods, and drying instability. Nevertheless, recent technical innovations have enabled the production of diverse commercial and traditional camel milk items, alongside new processing strategies to enhance product consistency and quality.
Millions of people in arid and semi-arid areas depend on camel milk for daily sustenance. Understanding its complex composition helps food technologists overcome processing barriers, paving the way for safer, higher-quality, and longer-lasting dairy products that can enhance local nutrition and reduce post-harvest waste in dryland communities.
This work informs dairy processors, food manufacturers, and product developers seeking to diversify beyond bovine milk. Although camel milk processing presents technical barriers, the demonstrated feasibility of commercial products suggests applied opportunities are emerging. Developing tailored processing protocols could yield value-added dairy goods for arid-region markets and speciality health sectors.
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Abstract Camel milk is the mainstay for millions of people in arid and semi-arid environments. In these areas, it is mainly consumed raw or after it spontaneously turns sour. Although some attempts have been made to produce dairy products from camel milk, processing of camel milk is generally considered to be difficult and the quality of the final products made from camel milk do not correspond to their bovine milk counterparts. This paper reports a comprehensive analysis of the literature on camel milk products and presents synthesis of the latest developments, limitations pertaining processing and opportunities for development of new and improved camel milk products. The protein composition and colloidal structure of camel milk differs from cow milk. It is characterized by absence of β-lactoglobulin, low κ-casein content, high proportion of β-casein, larger casein micelles and smaller fat globules. These differences lead to the difficulty of making dairy products from camel milk using the same technologies as for bovine milk. Some of the challenges of camel milk processing include poor stability of the milk during UHT treatment, impaired rennetability, formation of weak and fragile curd during coagulation, longer fermentation time, and low thermal stability of the milk during drying. Despite these difficulties, it has now become possible to produce a range of commercial and traditional dairy products from camel milk. Some of the strategies that could be applied to improve the quality and characteristics of camel milk products are discussed. Graphical Abstract
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DOI: 10.1186/s43014-023-00130-7
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