Researchers study how to make milk a powerhouse product

Thursday, March 21, 2013

by SUSAN MANN

Several University of Guelph researchers are shaking up milk’s composition to make it a powerhouse product for improving people’s health.

The interdisciplinary team of scientists is made up of Milena Corredig, a food science professor and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council/Ontario Dairy Council chair; Bonnie Mallard, a pathobiology professor, John Cant, a professor in the university’s animal and poultry science department, and others.

Corredig’s work involves improving milk’s composition to provide added health benefits for people, such as helping to build muscle, prevent cancer or dementia. “These heath benefits arise from redistributing and concentrating fats and proteins already found in milk,” a March 19 University of Guelph press release says.

Working with Filippo Miglior of Agriculture and Agri Food Canada, Corredig’s team is analyzing more than 2,000 milk samples from Canadian cows to figure out the number, size and kinds of fats, proteins and other milk components that help improve human health.

For another part of the project, Mallard is looking for genetically superior cows with superb disease resistant traits that will provide the best milk production, while Cant is studying how changing cows’ feed alters the ratio and kinds of fats and proteins in their milk.

Graham Lloyd, Dairy Farmers of Ontario general counsel and communications director, says by email “milk is the most nutrient dense food and if it can be enhanced for medical advancement, we believe everyone can benefit.”

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, the Ontario Dairy Council and other industry partners are funding this research. BF