A milk revolution

Janne Karin Brodin

At Department of Animal and Aquacultural Sciences (IHA), Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB), scientists have arrived at a compound cow diet resulting in a healthier composition of milk fat.

More favourable fatty acids in milk Photo: Alessandro Paiva SXC

Milk fat contains some fatty acids that are considered unhealthy, while others have a positive effect on our health. The saturated palmitic acid (C16:0) is viewed as one of the most unfavourable fatty acids in milk fat, while unsaturated oleic acid (C18:1) is credited with positive attributes.

Compared to “ordinary” milk, the fat in the milk from these experiments displays a far more favourable composition. The reduction of palmitic acid was large and relatively stable within the interval 13-18%. In most of the experiments, the reduction was in the range of 16-18%. The desired increase in oleic acid content in milk fat also occurred, but the variation was larger than for palmitic acid, and lay in the range of 8-22%.

This research project is a collaborative effort between UMB (IHA and Department of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Science), TINE, Felleskjøpet Fôrutvikling, Felleskjøpet Rogaland Agder and Bioforsk Vest Særheim. The Norwegian Research Council has supported the project financially.

Published: 26.08.09
Updated: 27.08.09
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