Variation of lactoferrin and whey protein fractions along different stages of milk technological processing at dairy plant level

This study assessed the concentration of whey protein fractions in different dairy matrices, including raw milk (RM), pasteurized milk (PM), cheese whey (CW), and Ricotta cheese whey (RW) collected along the production of mozzarella and Asiago cheeses. A linear mixed model was implemented in order to analyze the variability of bovine serum albumin (BSA), lactoferrin (LF), α-Lactalbumin (α-LA), β-lactoglobulin A (β-LG A) and B (β-LG B). Results suggest that analyzed dairy matrices are characterized by specific whey protein profiles. Lactoferrin and α-LA concentrations linearly decreased due to technological processing stages, while BSA, β-LG A and β-LG B declined mainly in RW (i.e. after Ricotta production). In terms of relative abundance, LF was least abundant in RM, PM, and CW but most prominent in RW. Despite challenges posed by pasteurization and cheese making, CW remained a substantial source of LF and whey proteins, offering potential for economical and nutritional applications.