A potential commercial use of cajeta (a traditional milk product from Mexico) in the development of whey beverages

Abstract

Cajeta is a Mexican artisanal candy elaborated from goat milk. While it is popular among consumers, it is necessary to find alternative uses to improve access to stable and fair trade for producers. Therefore, the objective of this study was to develop a functional beverage using whey with different levels of inulin (4, 8 and 12%) as a prebiotic, guar gum (0.321, 0.625 and 1.25%) as a thickener and cajeta (20% v/v) as flavoring. Nine formulations were prepared, stored at 4 °C and analyzed on days 0, 7 and 14. The pH values were constant (5.9) in all formulations, while acidity exhibited changes on days 0 and 14. Flow properties of the beverages exhibited a non-Newtonian behavior and fitted best with the Power Law (PL). According to acceptance tests and a Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) questionnaire, it was possible to obtain a cajeta-flavored whey-beverage using lower concentrations of inulin and gum. The physicochemical characteristics provided by ingredients added in lower concentrations did not affect the organoleptic properties of the product, showed lower viscosity, and were highly accepted by most participants.

A Literature Database Review of the Competitive Factors That Influence the Production and Use of Whey in the Brazilian Dairy Industry

“…Factor F3—Consumers’ health concerns—underscores the discernible shift in consumer preferences towards products that align with their health aspirations [ 59 ]. The increasing emphasis on consumer health and well-being has spurred the demand for dairy beverages containing whey as part of their composition [ 48 ].…”

“…Shifting the focus to technological dimensions, the forefront factor to consider is F8—New production technologies. In this context, the utilisation of whey ushers in a realm of innovation by fostering the creation of new products characterised by enhanced nutritional and sensory attributes, opening avenues for implementing pioneering processing techniques [ 59 ]. This realm of innovation permits diversifying products manufactured on a single production line, thereby augmenting the capacity of these lines.…”

Interaction mechanism of icariin and whey protein based on spectrofluorimetry and molecular docking

“…Whey protein is a kind of protein extracted from milk, which contains β-lactoglobulin and lactalbumin (Graf et al, 2020;Melnikova et al, 2022;Jabeen et al, 2021). It has the characteristics of high nutritional value, easy digestion and absorption, and contains a variety of active components (Barajas-Ramírez et al, 2022;Bolognesi et al, 2022). It is recognized as a high quality protein.…”