Butterfat

Milk fat is the sum of the lipid components of the milk. Fat is in the milk of the ingredient with the most fluctuating content. He is from 3.2 to 6.0 %. Responsible for these fluctuations are in addition to the breed of cattle, especially feeding, husbandry and health of dairy animals. By the different fat composition is also limited.

The fat is in the milk in the form of tiny globules or droplets contain ( emulsion). The actual milk fat (such as cholesterol and phospholipids) is surrounded by a thin shell of lipids. These lipids have lipophilic and hydrophilic parts of the molecule, with the fats (lipophilic part ) or with water and other polar molecules (hydrophilic parts) can interact. This act, the lipids as emulsifiers and stabilizing the small fat droplets in milk aqueous otherwise.

In untreated milk of the main portion of these fat globules has a diameter of about 1 to 5 microns. Untreated milk frames, ie, the lipid phase separates and sits down after a shorter life on the surface. To counteract this effect, a commercially available fresh milk is homogenized (next to heat treatment to increase the shelf life). The lipid globules are " crushed " refers to a diameter of less than 1 micron. It is believed that these finer distribution of the fat globules also facilitates the absorption of the milk fat in the intestine.

Milk fat is a carrier of the fat- soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.

Composition

The milk fat consists primarily of triglycerides, esters of trivalent alcohol glycerol with fatty acids. Milk fat having a relatively high content of short esterified fatty acids ( butyric acid ), and a relatively low content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (linoleic acid, linolenic acid, etc.).

Only fatty acids with four to 16 carbon atoms are synthesized from the cow, fatty acids having 16 to 18 carbon atoms derived from the feed.

Milk fat is liquid as a mixture of liquid and crystallized triacylglycerols at room temperature. Milk is an emulsion of liquid milk fat in water, butter is a " solid emulsion " of water in semi-liquid milk fat, milk fat ghee is pure and completely crystallized before. Milk fat and ghee are therefore solid at room temperature.