THE MYSTERIOUS WHAT AND WHY OF MODIFIED MILK INGREDIENTS PART II: MODIFIED WHY?

Modified milk ingredients exist, and continue to thrive in place of both unaltered, natural milk and milk ingredients for a number of reasons. A Leading argument to the existence of modified milk ingredients is the claim that these modifications improve product quality.

There are many claims by companies that the switch to modified milk ingredients is, in part, due to these modifications promoting either a better quality product, or a healthier to consume product. This is the aspect companies will again and again highlight with many examples.

​As an example, whey, a protein of milk, is actually the by-products of the cheese making process. In the past this was a waste by-products, but has in recent years been repurposed in the use of other products to "improve both functional and nutritional properties," as the Quebec Dairy Council states, or on has been used on its own as an "essential nutrient beverage" (also known as protein powder).

Milk proteins in general are added to food products to improve quality. Adding more of these proteins to cheese makes for better color, flavor and moisture control; by adding it to yogurt it gives the product a softer, thinner and smoother texture. Whey has been used in other various ways; It is said that beans and grains soaked in whey are easier to digest, it is used in marinades and condiments, it has replaced some vinegars in pickled vegetables. According to the Quebec Dairy Council’s literature, certain milk proteins and protein fractions added to cheese have been linked to regulating blood pressure, modulating the immune system and facilitating the transport of minerals in the body.

Of course, keep in mind that the above highlights literature from various pro-modified milk ingredient industries and companies. The debate of transitioning to modified milk ingredients leading to better quality versus sacrificed quality has two sides. Many will argue that quality texture, taste and mouthfeel are actually lost with the use of these modified milk ingredients. Those who argue that a healthier product is lost in this transition will cite arguments debating cancer causing agents, increased subjection to allergy and intolerance inducing ingredients, excessive consumption causing kidney and liver damage (whey), lack of nutrients that are readily found in whole and unaltered milk products, and lack of nutrient absorption (when the fat in milk is useful in fat soluble vitamins for example). Many advocates against the use of modified milk ingredients will often state that this controversial quality and health improvement reasoning used by companies is one to hide the truer driving force, cost.

Cost is arguably the greatest driving force of the entire modified milk ingredients transition. Reduced costs come in various ways, three that I will highlight.

​The first is shelf life. This benefits the producer, as well as both supplier and consumer. Modified milk ingredients mean modified; and those modifications that take place can be done so to increase the shelf life of the product they are placed in. This is really more of a relative relation to fresh dairy’s hindering quality of limiting the shelf life of the product they are an ingredient in. This is where you, your grocery store and the company all win. The product keeps longer in your home as well as on grocery store shelves, meaning less is wasted and considered a loss by you, the supplier, and by the company.

The second cost factor is in the efficient use of milk ingredients. Not all products need all milk ingredients; in fact some milk ingredients traditionally ended up becoming waste byproducts of food making processes. When we modify milk, we remove the liquid and separate the various ingredients that milk is comprised of, then reassemble select ingredients as needed. What was one, now becomes many; This means the many parts of milk can be divided up amongst various products, using less in more products, and in more ways. Some items that would never have used milk in its whole fluid form, now contain modified milk ingredients. Items that once contained milk in its whole and fluid form, now contain select components of milk.

And finally, the third cost factor, and a reason for Canadians to see more “modified milk ingredients” in their food products, is their food sources. Many products are import products. The amount of fluid milk that can be imported into Canada without being subject to tariffs is quite limited. Modified milk ingredients are not fluid, and therefore do not fall under the same category as fluid milk (non-modified milk). Of course, if it is cheaper to import, we should hope it would also be cheaper for consumers to buy than those items made with imported fluid milk. Whether this is the case is unknown.

So there are various reasons to the existence of modified milk ingredients; and much can be debated as to whether each of these have a more positive or negative impact (cost effectiveness, quality, health impact). But what does this all mean from a Chinese medicine perspective?

From a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective, every whole food has its temperature (hot, warm, neutral, cool, cold), its flavors (sweet, salty, bitter, sour, acrid, pungent, bland etc.), and its actions on certain organs and systems of the body (channel affinity). The issue here is whole food. Modified milk ingredients aren’t whole. You’ve modified the whole, which also means that you’ve modified the nature of the whole.

This is an issue because, with the vague term “modified milk ingredients” listed instead of the actual ingredients, we don't know what modification have truely taken place. This means we can only best guess the select impact on the body. Knowing those modification is incredibly important to understanding the action that “modified” has on the body.

After this is the issue of then trying to determine the actions of the all the possible wide and varying combinations and amounts of these modified milk ingredients. Again, Chinese Medicine is about whole foods. Hundreds, if not thousands, of years have gone into studying the nature of a food and its impact on the human body in health and in healing. The concept of Modified Milk Ingredients is so recent and new; and so varying depending on what is used and what is not, that it becomes difficult to determine if there is any significant change in nature from natural unaltered milk, and what these exact changes are.

Often these modified milk ingredients are increased amounts of milk fats, or milk proteins added to non-milk amd milk products alike. In TCM we have a saying; "everything in moderation." Large amounts of anything, even healthy things, can have negative impact on the body. Knowing what ingredients of milk have been extracted from or added to the product is important, but also the amount of supplementation is equally important when considering eating in moderation.

The simple truth is that the nature and actions of modified milk ingredients on the human body and their impact on health are still undetermined and unknown. Whether it strays far enough from its original whole form to cause consequence on health is something that will take time to determine. What is important, from a TCM perspective, is what these modifications are and at what quantity, so we can, over time, understand and answer the important questions of their impact and on long term diet and health

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