3,505,077 United States Patent Office Patented Apr. 7, 1970 1. 2 according to the food laws. The best known among these 3,505,077 is glycerol monostearate which chemically is very strong PRODUCTION OF RECOMBINED CREAM Arthur Bratland, Bergen, Norway, assignor to GAF Cor ly related to fat and which can, therefore, be tolerated in poration, New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware foodstuffs. No Drawing. Continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. However, it appears that the properties of natural cream, 479,294, Aug. 12, 1965. This application Dec. 29, 1965, for example in the production of whipped cream, will have Ser. No. 517,418 completely disappeared in the recombined cream. Should Claims priority, application Norway, Jan. 9, 1965, one attempt to whip such recombined cream, a stiff prod 156,279; Mar. 6, 1965, 157,083; Aug. 31, 1965, uct is certainly obtained, but this lacks the "short' con 159,543, 159,544 0. sistency which is characteristic of cream whipped from Int. CI. A23c 9/00, 11/00, 13/12 natural cream. U.S. C. 99-63 15 Claims Also recombined milk appears to be lacking certain properties for such special purposes, for example in the ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE production of ice-cream having a low fat content, but 5 this disadvantage is not so fully evident here, even if it A recombined milk or cream is obtained by mixing to will still be noticed by those who use recombined milk gether a low fat milk fraction, a high fat milk fraction and for such special purposes. Water. The low fat fraction includes skim milk and butter A long series of additives have hitherto been tried for milk or the low fat fraction obtained by concentrating a meeting these disadvantages without success. However, it cream of at least 20% fat up to about 70% fat. 20 has been shown in tests carried out by the inventor, that these disadvantages can be overcome in a Surprisingly simple manner. This application is a continuation-in-part of application According to the present invention, a process of pro Ser. No. 479,294, filed Aug. 12, 1965 and now abandoned. ducing a recombined cream product is obtained by mixing This invention relates to milk products and a process 25 fat with a fluid produced from a dried milk powder and for the production of such milk products. More particular water, and homogenizing the mixture. The dried milk ly, the invention relates to whippable milk products. powder for the fluid is obtained by separating a genuine As will be well known milk is the principal nutrient milk cream containing at least 20 percent by weight of of the human being. Milk is, however, subjected to rapid butterfat into a high fat fraction with a fat content, for deterioration when it is not processed for improving its 30 example, of about 35 percent and a low-fat fraction (e.g. keeping qualities. There are two important processes in buttermilk), and by then adding the low fat fraction in volved in the deterioration of milk. The low fat water an amount of about 5 percent to a low fat milk fraction Soluble fraction may acidify by microbes acting upon the (skimmed milk) obtained from the separation of milk Sugar and forming lactic acid. Secondly, the fat fraction into a high fat milk fraction (cream) of about 35 percent may rancidify, which is caused by oxidation and hy fat and a low fat milk fraction (skimmed milk). drolysis. According to one aspect of the present invention the In order to increase the keeping qualities of milk and low fat milk fraction used in the recombination of milk milk products, genuine milk is separated into a high fat and cream comprises a first fraction consisting of skimmed fraction (cream) with a fat content of about 35 percent, milk and a second fraction consisting of buttermilk. and a low fat fraction (skimmed milk) by centrifugation. 40 As is well-known buttermilk is the fluid which remains The high fat fraction is further processed by churning into after churning. By experiments in the production of dried butter and buttermilk. The low fat fraction is normally milk from this fluid, dried milk powder can certainly also concentrated either to form condensed milk or milk be obtained, but on recombining this, a fluid results which powder. may have peculiar taste, which in the pure state appears When it is desired to obtain a substitute for fresh whole 45 unpleasant to most people. There is a limited demand for milk, especially on board ship, even in places which are fresh buttermilk, and this product today represents a isolated for longer periods from access to daily supplies by-product of lower commercial value for the dairies. of fresh milk, such milk fractions are recombined. Quite Usually the milk suppliers (the farmers) have the oppor generally, such recombination processes consist in making tunity to fetch such buttermilk low-priced so as to use a low fat fraction either by diluting condensed skimmed 50 it for fodder, an opportunity which only very few Sup milk or dissolving skimmed milk powder in the correct pliers make use of. Neither is the buttermilk used espe amount of water, whereupon fat is added to the fraction cially as, for example, calf fodder. thus obtained and the mixture is thoroughly mixed to It has also been shown from tests, firstly, that on re gether. In order to avoid too rapid separation of fat, the combining milk the addition of such buttermilk powder mixture is normally subjected to homogenisation, and, if 55 in smaller quantities can result in a lowering of the neces desired, also pasteurisation. The mixture obtained thereby sary amount of emulsifier, and secondly, the above-de will have a flavor which is close to that of fresh milk. scribed differences between natural milk and recombined In recent years, such recombination is so to say solely milk for special purposes disappear. The above-mentioned based upon the use of skimmed milk powder as the low flavour does not, on the whole, appear to be generated fat milk fraction. Unsalted butter is normally used as 60 any longer. the fat, but is is also possible to use other fats, if desired, According to another aspect of the present invention, for instance palm kernel oil. a product with a similar surprising effect of improving Attempts have also been made to produce cream in the whipping ability of recombined milk and cream may this manner. Such recombined cream can, if it is pro be obtained by a fractionating process involving the steps duced from good raw materials, certainly have many of 65 of first producing a conventional cream having a fat the properties of natural cream. and the flavour can even content of at least 20 percent and thereupon centrifugat be very close to that of natural cream, but for various ap ing this conventional cream further to a fat content of plications such recombined cream is, nevertheless, more at least 40 percent. It has appeared that the low fat milk different from the natural product than is the case with fraction obtained in this way also will improve the whip recombined milk. 70 ping ability of cream when used either alone or in admix It is usual practice during such recombination to add ture with conventional skimmed milk in the recombining an emulsifier chosen among those which are permitted proceSS. 3,505,077 3 4. When manufacturing cream by means of the conven marked effect upon the properties of cream, particularly tional types of centrifuges nowadays in use in the dairy its whipping ability. Obviously, this discovery may be industry, such centrifuges may be set to give cream hav utilised in a number of ways for making whippable re ing a desired fat content up to about 35 percent. However, combined cream. In general, this recombined cream must it is also known that it is possible to obtain a higher consist of three constituents: a fat constituent, a skimmed fat content by using more advanced centrifuge construc milk constituent, and a buttermilk constituent. tions, but up to now such advanced equipment has been The fat constituent may consist of any type of fat. considered undesirable for use in the dairy industry. As indicated above, butter will be preferred in most Since skimmed milk is a by-product, there is not much cases, but other glyceride fats may be used, such as soya. gained by the increase in recovery percentage of this bean oil, palm kernel oil, coconut oil, or mixtures thereof. fraction, and, moreover, cream having such high fat O Also, a modified fat may be used. In ordinary cream, content tends to be very unstable, separating readily in the fat content may vary from about 12 percent and butter and buttermilk fractions. In addition, power con upwards. Good whipping ability without further addi sumption increases considerably and the equipment is tions may be obtained from about 15 percent fat. very expensive. 5 The skimmed milk constituent forms, together with the However, when further fractionating cream as fat, the constituent imparting the desired taste to the explained above, a fraction will be obtained which because product. Therefore, it is in general desired to keep of its high value in a recombining process may make the percentage of this constituent relatively high. On the the use of such expensive equipment justifiable. other hand, however, a decrease in the content of skimmed When using buttermilk or a buttermilk product such 20 milk constituent will not be much noticeable before this as buttermilk powder as addition, it should be kept in content is substantially decreased below 30-20 percent mind that buttermilk may vary in its properties all accord of the total low fat milk constituents present.