- Whey protein can be produced from milk and cheese
- The veneer is separated from milk by an extraction process which gives a liquid product
- The embankment is pasteurized using HTST
- Ion exchange and mechanical filtration
- The filtering, how nice should the product be
- Packing the product.
Whey protein can be made from milk and cheese, or whey and casein, which are two different protein species. However, it is seen that all major brands produce whey protein powder from milk.
The whey must first be separated from the milk, this is done by means of voltage methods. Through the voltage methods, the whale becomes fluid. Then the first step in the whey manufacturing process appears. The first step in the process is to pasteurize the dike, this happens through an HTST pasteurization. HTST stands for “High Temperature – Short Time”.
The next step in the process is that the product is heated to the desired medium temperature of 71.6 degrees. The product is pasteurized to kill any bacteria’s that may be present. Therefore, it is extremely important that the hygiene is at the highest priority throughout the manufacturing process. Hygiene must be maintained right down to the detail this is from clean door handles to hygienic machine feet
The next step in the manufacturing process is to isolate the proteins from the whey. This is achieved through an ion exchange or mechanical filtration. To perform an ion exchange, it requires the use of acids, this being hydrochloric acid or bases, for example sodium hydroxide. During this process it is again very important the cleanliness is at the top, on all hygienic surfaces, and the hygiene is important right down to the ball bearings in stainless steel castor. This process causes a denaturation of the proteins.
The mechanical filtration, which is also known as cross-filtration, is a physical process that often results in a better product that has a higher quality level. However, it is a more expensive and challenging method.
The filtering determines how high the quality of the powder is after production. The more times the powder is filtered, the finer and higher the quality is. In each filtration, the content of fat, lactose, ash and other impurities in the product is reduced. There are mainly two whey products, it is isolate and concentrate. The difference between these two products is how many times the product is filtered and how fine the filtering is.
Types of whey protein
There are basically three main types of whey protein:
whey hydrolyzate, isolate and concentrate
Whey isolate
Whey isolate is considered the purest form of whey protein on the market. The product usually contains 90-95% whey protein and minimal fat content 0.5-1%, as well as minimal lactose content. Which is beneficial for lactose intolerance people. Isoalt, however, lacks many of the health properties from “normal” whey contains immunoglobulins and other small molecules that have beneficial effects on our health.
Whey concentrate
Whey concentrate has a lower protein content than isoalt. It is between 25-89% protein. However, it is seen that it is commercially around 80%. Whey concentrate has a lactose content between 4-8%, as well as fat and other minerals.
Hydrolysed whey
Hydrolysed whey protein is powder which has been enzyme-treated to break down long protein chains into shorter chains. The goal of this is that the body can more easily absorb the protein and reduce the risk of allergens