Non-browning lactose-free milk powder and methods of making same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11266158-B2
Application number	US-201916705340-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 6, 2019
Priority date	Dec 2, 2016
Publication date	Mar 8, 2022
Grant date	Mar 8, 2022

Abstract

Disclosed are processes for preparing dry or powder dairy compositions having low lactose contents and containing polyphenol compounds. The resultant dry or powder dairy compositions can be used to form reconstituted fluid dairy products, which can have improved organoleptic properties, such as less cooked flavor, sulfur odor, and brown color.

First claim

We claim:

1. A process for preparing a dry dairy composition, the process comprising:
(i) adding from about 25 to about 750 ppm green tea extract polyphenols to a dairy product to form a fluid dairy composition, wherein the fluid dairy composition comprises:
from about 3 to about 7 wt. % protein;
from about 1.5 to about 3.5 wt. % carbohydrates; and
less than or equal to about 0.5 wt. % lactose;

(ii) removing at least a portion of water from the fluid dairy composition to form a concentrated dairy composition; and
(iii) drying the concentrated dairy composition to form the dry dairy composition, wherein the dry dairy composition comprises:
from about 40 to about 65 wt. % protein;
from about 15 to about 30 wt. % carbohydrates;
less than or equal to about 1 wt. % lactose; and
from about 250 to about 7500 ppm polyphenols.

2. The process of claim 1 , wherein:
removing at least a portion of water comprises an evaporation step, a reverse osmosis step, a forward osmosis step, or operating at sub-atmospheric conditions, or any combination thereof; and
drying comprises spray drying.

3. The process of claim 1 , wherein the polyphenols comprise catechins, flavonoids, or any combination thereof.

4. The process of claim 1 , wherein:
the dry dairy composition has less cooked flavor than that of an otherwise identical powdered dairy composition prepared without the polyphenols;
the dry dairy composition has less sulfur odor than that of an otherwise identical powdered dairy composition prepared without the polyphenols;
the dry dairy composition has less brown color than that of an otherwise identical powdered dairy composition prepared without the polyphenols; or
any combination thereof.

5. The process of claim 1 , further comprising a step of:
pasteurizing the dairy product before step (i);
pasteurizing the fluid dairy composition before step (ii); or
pasteurizing the concentrated dairy composition before step (iii).

6. The process of claim 1 , further comprising a step of adding lactase enzyme to the dairy product before step (i).

7. The process of claim 1 , wherein the dairy product is prepared by a membrane filtration process comprising two or more of microfiltration, ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, and reverse osmosis.

8. The process of claim 1 , wherein the dry dairy composition comprises:
less than or equal to about 0.5 wt. % lactose; and
from about 500 to about 3500 ppm polyphenols.

9. A dry dairy composition comprising:
from about 35 to about 90 wt. % protein;
from about 10 to about 35 wt. % carbohydrates;
less than or equal to about 1.5 wt. % lactose; and
from about 100 to about 7500 ppm green tea extract polyphenols.

10. The composition of claim 9 , wherein the composition comprises from about 100 to about 3500 ppm polyphenols.

11. The composition of claim 9 , wherein the composition comprises:
from about 40 to about 65 wt. % protein;
from about 15 to about 30 wt. % carbohydrates;
less than or equal to about 1 wt. % lactose; and
from about 250 to about 7500 ppm polyphenols.

12. The composition of claim 11 , wherein the composition further comprises:
from about 0.1 wt. % to about 27 wt. % fat; and
from about 3 wt. % to about 12 wt. % minerals.

13. The composition of claim 11 , wherein the composition has a total solids content of greater than or equal to about 93 wt. %.

14. The composition of claim 11 , wherein the dry dairy composition has less cooked flavor, sulfur odor, and/or brown color than that of an otherwise identical powdered dairy composition without the polyphenols.

15. A process of reconstituting a milk product, the process comprising mixing water with the dry dairy composition of claim 11 to form a reconstituted milk product.

16. A reconstituted milk product prepared by the process of claim 15 , wherein the reconstituted milk product comprises:
from about 3 to about 7 wt. % protein;
from about 1 to about 4 wt. % carbohydrates;
less than or equal to about 0.2 wt. % lactose; and
from about 25 to about 750 ppm polyphenols.

17. A process for preparing a dry dairy composition, the process comprising:
(a) adding from about 50 to about 1500 ppm green tea extract polyphenols to a concentrated dairy product having a total solids content from about 12 to about 35 wt. % to form a concentrated dairy composition, wherein the concentrated dairy composition comprises:
from about 6 to about 20 wt. % protein;
from about 3.5 to about 7 wt. % carbohydrates; and
less than or equal to about 0.5 wt. % lactose; and

(b) drying the concentrated dairy composition to form the dry dairy composition, wherein the dry dairy composition comprises:
from about 35 to about 90 wt. % protein;
from about 10 to about 35 wt. % carbohydrates;
less than or equal to about 1.5 wt. % lactose; and
from about 100 to about 10,000 ppm polyphenols.

18. The process of claim 17 , wherein the dry dairy composition comprises:
from about 40 to about 65 wt. % protein;
from about 15 to about 30 wt. % carbohydrates;
less than or equal to about 1 wt. % lactose; and
from about 250 to about 7500 ppm polyphenols.

19. The process of claim 18 , wherein drying comprises spray drying.

20. The process of claim 18 , wherein:
the dry dairy composition has a total solids content of greater than or equal to about 93 wt. %; and
the concentrated dairy product has a total solids content from about 15 to about 25 wt. %.

Assignees

• Fairlife Llc

Inventors

• Ur Rehman Shakeel
• Kopesky Brandon
• White Calvin
• Backinoff Scott
• Doelman Timothy Peter

Classifications

• A23B11/18

  by addition of preservatives (addition of microorganisms or enzymes A23C9/12; addition of other substances A23C9/152) · CPC title

• A23B11/13

  the materials being loose unpacked · CPC title

• A23B2/746

  with singly-bound oxygen · CPC title

• A23C9/1427

  by dialysis, reverse osmosis or hyperfiltration, e.g. for concentrating or desalting · CPC title

• A23C9/152 Primary

  containing additives (fermented milk preparations containing additives A23C9/13) · CPC title