WO2009061164A1

WO2009061164A1 - Method for producing l-arginine containing protein milk product

Info

Publication number: WO2009061164A1
Application number: PCT/LT2008/000008
Authority: WO
Inventors: Vytautas Fedaravicius
Original assignee: KARPAVICIUS RAIMONDAS
Current assignee: KARPAVICIUS RAIMONDAS
Priority date: 2007-11-10
Filing date: 2008-10-16
Publication date: 2009-05-14
Anticipated expiration: 2010-05-10
Also published as: LT5581B; LT2007068A

Abstract

The present invention relates to products containing L-arginine amino acid, specifically, to the method for producing L-arginine containing protein milk product that can be used as a food product. The claimed production method combines alternately applied mechanical (microfiltration) and heat treatment of milk and makes it possible to obtain a milk product that is characterized by a higher L-arginine content and various taste properties.

Description

METHOD FOR PRODUCING L-ARGININE CONTAINING PROTEIN MILK

PRODUCT

The present invention relates to products that contain L-arginine amino acids and have a positive effect on human health. More specifically, the present invention relates to the method of producing L-arginine of protein milk product, which can be used in the food industry as a food product.

The presently known L-arginine producing methods are described in USA patents No. 7252978 and No. 5034319.

According to the first method for L-arginine production, L-arginine is produced by way of biosynthesis in which microorganisms which have L-arginine producing ability and have been modified so that expression of lysE gene should be enhanced, such a microorganism further modified so that an arginine repressor should not function normally, or such a microorganism further modified so that intracellular activity of an enzyme in L- arginine biosynthetic pathway should be enhanced in a medium to produce and accumulate L-arginine in the medium and collecting the L-arginine from the medium. In both patents referred herein the Coryneform bacteria is used as a base microorganism.

The main disadvantage of both patents referred herein is that L-arginine amino acid is produced by way of biosynthesis and an amino acid that has been produced in this way poorly is absorbed by the body (not more than 20 %). Besides, microorganisms are genetically processed and, as a result, a genetically modified product is obtained.

The presented application for invention proposes a process for producing a milk product naturally containing L-arginine without the use of biochemical means and only through heat and mechanical treatment methods.

The greatest advantage of the proposed production method is that the raw material here is pure cow's milk, which is separated, microfϊltered and subjected to a heat treatment.

This process does not involve any biochemical method, let alone genetic manipulation. 100 g of natural cow's milk contains approximately from 1.24 g to 1.94 g of L- arginine amino acid. By means of repeated microfiltration and heat treatment, the proteins contained in cow's milk are condensed and a higher concentration of L-arginine is achieved until L-arginine content in the final product is increased from 4.96 g to 7.76 g per 100 g of product.

The daily L-arginine intake for humans is 4-6 g; therefore, by using the suggested method the daily intake required for one person is produced from on litre of milk.

This following shows how L-arginine containing protein milk is produced:

The flowchart is presented in Fig. 1. The digital symbols specified in the Figure 1 correspond to the following devices or stages: 1 - raw milk storage container; 2 - separation- microfiltration/Bactocatch and heat treatment; 3 - cream pasteurization-cooling; 4 - skimmed milk storage; 5 - retentate sterilization and cooling; 6 - cream standardization to 40 % fat content; 7 - skimmed milk pasteurization up to 62 ⁰C for up to 8 min cooling to 50-55 C⁰; 8 - microfiltration - protein fractionation; 9 - retentate pasteurization and cooling to 4 ⁰C; 10 - permeate cooling to 4 °C; 11 - retentate storage container; 12 - MF permeate storage container; 13 - retentate heating to 10 ⁰C; 14 - retentate cooling to 4 °C; 15 - protein ultrafiltration and concentration with defiltration; 16 - UF permeate storage container; 17 - retentate cooling; 18 - retentate storage; 19 - reverse osmosis; 20 - RO polisher; 21 - RO permeate storage container and pasteurization; 22 - water storage and water for defiltration; 23 - flavouring substance preparation container; 24 - container for mixing and adding flavouring substances; 25 - product pasteurization and aseptic packaging.

After delivering to a milk processing plant, cow's milk is stored in the raw product storage containers. Once the production process has been started, the milk is transferred to the separation, Bactocatch microfiltration and heat treatment unit. After heating the milk to a temperature of 28-36 ⁰C, butterfat is separated from the milk in a separator, with a fat content, depending on production requirements, of 40 % - 60 %, whereby the butterfat - cream is transferred to a pasteurizer and is pasteurized at a temperature of 95 - 106 °C following which it is cooled down to 4 °C and is transferred to the cream collection and storage container. Skimmed milk is transferred to the Bactocatch microfiltration system with 0.1 - 10 μm membranes at a temperature of 24 -55 ⁰C. After removal of bacteria with the use of the Bactocatch technology, the skimmed milk enters the heat exchanger in which it is heated to 64 ⁰C and exposed to this temperature for 7-9 min and after this operation cooled down to 50 - 55 ⁰C.

The retentate discharged from the Batcocatch system is sterilized, cooled and transferred for cream standardization to the required fat content.

Skimmed milk is transferred for microfiltration - protein displacement. After protein displacement process, the retentate is pasteurized, cooled down to 4 °C and is stored in the retentate storage container. The permeate is cooled down to 4 °C and is collected in intermediate containers. Membranes having size of 0.1 - 10 μm are used for microfiltration - protein displacement; filtration temperature - 28 - 55 ⁰C; membrance area - from 70 to 2400 m² and filtratio speed is 50 - 23000 1/h.

The microfiltration/protein displacement retentate transferred from the storage container is heated to 10-15 °C and transferred to the ultrafiltration - defiltration for casein protein purification and concentration. The size of membranes used at this stage varies from 0.001 to 0.1 μm and 5500 - 7500 1/h of defiltering water is used. The resultant retentate - casein protein with dry matter content of 28-32 % is cooled down to 4 °C and placed in the storage container. The permeate is also cooled down to 4 ⁰C and placed in the storage container.

Ultrafiltration and microfiltration: the permeate from storage containers is transferred to the reverse osmosis filter in which membranes having diameter of less than 0.0001 μm are used; the area the membranes is adjusted depending on the production capacities. Retentate with 18 % - 28 % dry matter content is cooled down to 4 °C and transferred to the storage container or to 5 for the production of whey drink or whey product. Permeate is transferred to the RO polisher in which salts and mineral compounds are separated, permeate is pasteurized and cooled and the resultant water is used for defiltration and production depending on the demands. In the container intender for mixing and adding flavouring substances, UF ir RO retentates are mixed with strawberry, banana, wild strawberry and other flavouring additives, depending on the production demand, and is diluted with polisher water up to the required dry matter content. The mixture is pasteurized at a temperature of 52 - 62 °C, cooled down to 4 °C and packed into aseptic packages in sizes ranging from 100 ml to 500 ml.

The product obtained thereby is natural, may give more variety to the diet and may not cause any negative effect on the human body.

Claims

1. A method for producing an L-arginine containing protein milk product ch aracteri zed i n th at milk proteins are fractioned and gradually condensed in a series of membrane filters by combining filtration with heat treatment and avoiding the use of any biochemical means.

2. The method for producing L-arginine containing protein milk product according to claim 1, ch aracter i zed i n that the milk, after being heated to 28-36° C, is separated from butterfat, depending on the production needs, to the fat content of 40% - 60% in which butter fat - cream is transferred to the pasteurizer where it is pasteurized at a temperature of 95 - 106 ⁰C whereupon it is cooled down to 4 °C and transferred to the cream collection and storage container and skimmed milk is transferred to the Bactocatch system for microfiltration with membranes ranging from 0,1 -10 μm at a temperature of 24 - 55 ⁰C; thereafter, after removal of bacteria using the Bactocatch technology, skimmed milk is placed in the heat exchanger and heated to a temperature of 64 ⁰C and held at this temperature for 7-9 min whereupon it is cooled down to 50 - 55 °C.

3. The method for producing L-arginine containing protein milk product according to claims 1 and 2, characteri ze d in th at the skimmed milk retentate received during protein displacement process is pasteurized, cooled down to 4 °C and collected in the retentate collection container and thereafter the permeate is cooled down to 4 ⁰C, collected in intermediate containers and further microfiltered in 0.1 - 10 μm membranes at a filtration temperature of 28 - 55° C, membrane area ranging from 70 - 2400 m² and filtration speed of 50 - 23000 1/h.

4. The method for producing L-arginine containing protein milk product according to claims 1 - 3, ch aracter i zed i n th at the microfiltration - protein displacement retentate received from the storage container is heated to a temperature of 10 - 15 ⁰C and transferred to the ultrafiltration - defiltration for protein purification and concentration with the use of 0.001 - 0.1 μm membranes and at defiltration water speed of 5500 - 7500 1/h and resultant casein protein with a dry matter content of 28-32 % is cooled down to 4 °C and placed in the storage container.

5. The method for producing L-arginine containing protein milk product according to claims 1 - 4, ch aracteri zed i n th at the microfiltration - protein displacement retentate received from the storage containers is transferred to the reverse osmosis filter equipped with membranes with a diameter of up to 0.0001 μm the membrane area of which is adjusted according to the production capacities, the retentate with the dry matter content of 18 % - 28 % is thereafter cooled down to 4 ⁰C and transferred to the storage container and permeate is transferred to the reverse osmosis polisher, in which it is separated from salts and mineral compounds and after which it is pasteurized and cooled.

6. The method for producing L-arginine containing protein milk product according to claims 1 - 5, ch aracter i ze d i n th at the ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis retentates in the mixing and flavour adding container are mixed with strawberry, banana, wild strawberry and other flavouring additives, depending to the production demands, and diluted with reverse osmosis polisher water up to the required dry matter content, after which the mixture is pasteurized at a temperature of 52 -62 ⁰C, cooled down to 4 °C and packed in aseptic packages in sizes ranging from 100 ml to 500 ml.

7. The method for producing L-arginine containing protein milk product according to claims 1 - 6, ch aracter i zed i n th at the end product may be prepared only from casein powder, from a casein and whey protein mixture and also in that a pure whey protein drink or product may be obtained from this process.