Patent Abstract:
a process for preparing a low - lactose or lactose free mammalian milk product comprises the steps of enzymatically hydrolyzing the lactose present in mammalian milk , diluting the milk with a lactose - reduced liquid , and adding one or more of a protein , a mineral , a vitamin , a gum , a starch , a stabilizer , and / or an emulsifier to the milk .

Detailed Description:
we describe a process for preparing a milk product having reduced lactose content . the reduced lactose or lactose free milk has substantially similar nutritional content as a full lactose milk product . the process also provides a reduced lactose product having the same creamy mouthfeel with a high quality flavour delivery that is the same as or superior to a full lactose containing product . the process described herein provides a simple method of preparing lactose reduced or lactose free milk without the need to employ expensive lactose separation technology . the process described herein can be considered as a simple and cost effective method for making a reduced lactose or lactose free milk without the requirement of expensive technology such as filtration / membrane / chromatographic separation technology being installed into a dairy manufacturing plant . the reduced lactose or lactose free milk may have no additional sweetness , or may have a higher relative sweetness such as is desirable from a sensory perspective depending on national preferences and may have a reduced calorific value while retaining the flavour , taste and nutritional values of a full lactose containing milk . in particular , the process includes a reformulation step that involves re - formulating enzymatically hydrolysed reduced lactose or lactose free milk to produce an excellent tasting lactose free or reduced lactose milk product that tastes as good as a lactose containing milk . the process described herein does not require expensive technology and does not use by - products , including permeate and retentate of filtration technology . the invention provides a simple and extremely cost effective method for producing a good quality reduced lactose or lactose free milk product that does not require multiple expensive processing steps . in one aspect , the process includes the steps of enzymatically treating mammalian milk with lactose enzyme to hydrolyse lactose to galactose and glucose either before or after reformulating the milk by the addition of one or more of a milk protein and or a cereal or vegetable protein , a mineral , a vitamin , and a lactose free or lactose reduced liquid . the step of hydrolysis or breakdown of the lactose sugar in milk may be achieved by the addition of a lactose hydrolysing enzyme to milk . lactase catalyzes the hydrolysis of one mole of lactose ( a disaccharide ) to one mole each of the monosaccharides glucose and galactose . lactose can be hydrolyzed to d - glucose and d - galactose at ph 6 . 6 in the presence of the enzyme b - galactosidase and water . lactase enzyme activity can be inactivated by sanitisers such as iodine , chlorine or hydrogen peroxide and it is essential that all measures are put in place for example rinsing measuring / weighing containers before use to prevent the inactivation of lactase during processing . lactase activity is also inhibited by products containing monosaccharides for example corn sweeteners , fructose , polydextrose or honey therefore such ingredients if required , should be added after enzyme hydrolysis has taken place to avoid inactivation of lactase . lactase activity is stable between about ph 6 . 0 to about ph 8 . 0 with a significant reduction in activity around about ph 5 . 5 . lactase is stable up to around about 40 to about 41 ° c . with a drop in activity around about 43 ° c . optimum hydrolysis occurs at about 37 ° c . the practice of enzyme addition can take the form of manual addition for example , weighing the ingredient and adding it manually to the formulation for example into a mixing apparatus by a mixer , funnel , tank or by dosage equipment which consists of metered dosing of required enzyme into a line , venturi type mixer or tank . enzyme addition may also be possible at the packing stage of the process by means of dosing at the filling stage . the speed of lactase hydrolysis in milk is dependant on three main factors dosage , time and temperature . referring to fig2 , the rate of lactose hydrolysis in this case at a dosage of 0 . 2 % is temperature dependant . lower temperatures result in slower rates of lactose hydrolysis e . g . 5 ° c . at a dosage of 0 . 02 % will result in approximately 70 % hydrolysis 24 hours after addition . incubating the lactase dosed milk at 20 ° c . with lactase at a dosage of 0 . 02 % will result in approximately 95 % lactose hydrolysis 24 hours post addition of lactase enzyme . 100 % hydrolysis will be achieved at 40 ° c . approximately 8 hours post addition of lactase enzyme dosage at 0 . 02 %. table 3 below illustrates the relationship between the rate of hydrolysis and dosage rate . from table 3 it can be seen that doubling the dosage addition of lactase enzyme speeds the process considerably with full hydrolysis achieved after 10 hours . full hydrolysis was achieved for milk samples dosed at 1 . 5 times the dose rate at 16 hours post addition of enzyme whereas full hydrolysis was not achieved for single dose milk samples until 24 hours post dosage . the temperature at which the milk is stored during lactose hydrolysis can range from a minimum of about 1 ° c . to a maximum of about 40 ° c . above 40 ° c . lactase activity can diminish rapidly . the dosage rate of lactase can be between about 0 . 01 % to about 0 . 5 %. other dosage concentrations can be used as long as the end product is not affected negatively from a sensory perspective . for the purposes of this invention the time at which the hydrolysis can take place can typically range from a minimum of 2 hours to 36 hours . it is envisaged that incubation times greater than 36 hours will be possible in an industrial processing plant . table 3 above demonstrates that a wide range of times and lactase concentrations can be applied . a wide temperature range and the different points of addition of the lactase enzyme can also be applied to achieve a substantial equivalent hydrolysis for the purposes of this patent . the hydrolysis process may take place in batches whereby a required quantity of milk is stored in an appropriate sized milk tank for the time and temperature required to achieve full or partial lactose hydrolysis . dosing of the enzyme can also occur in a continuous process whereby it is possible to dose the enzyme into the milk flow at any stage of the plant post pasteurisation . dosing can also take place at the filling stage whereby measured quantities are dosed into each pack as it is filled . hydrolysis takes place once the enzyme is added . lactose free or lactose reduced liquid may be added to the end product of the hydrolysis treatment step . this liquid such as water performs two basic functions : reduction of the sweetness of the hydrolysed end product by diluting the sweet characteristic imparted by glucose and galactose in the enzyme hydrolysed milk ; and to aid in the dispersion of the constituent or constituents as described in the reformulating step below . the final volume of lactose free or lactose reduced liquid can range from a minimum of about 5 % v / v of the final product to a maximum of about 75 % v / v of the final product . the temperature of the lactose free or lactose reduced liquid can typically range from between about 1 ° c . to about 45 ° c . higher or lower temperature regimes are possible with this invention . one or more constituents may be added to the hydrolysed milk to normalise the taste of the reduced lactose or lactose free milk compared to the taste of lactose containing milk . the constituents may be added to the lactose free or lactose reduced liquid used to dilute the reduced lactose or lactose free milk as described above . there are a number of constituents that can be added to the reduced lactose or lactose free milk to control the taste , these include , but are not limited to , one or more of : one or more milk proteins selected from the following groups consisting of tmp ( total milk protein ), mpc ( milk protein concentrate ), mpi ( milk protein isolate ), zero lactose skimmed milk powder , wpi ( whey protein isolate ), casein , casein salts and wpc ( whey protein concentrate ) or any other suitable dairy protein may be added to the reduced lactose or lactose free milk . the protein may also derive from a non - dairy vegetable or cereal protein source e . g . wheat , rice , soya proteins or fungal source mycoproteins . protein can be added in the range of from about 0 . 1 % w / v to about 10 % w / v protein content to the end product . for particular end uses such as dairy based high protein shakes , dairy formulations for the elderly , sports drinks and the like , protein in an amount in excess of about 10 % w / v can be added to the reduced lactose or lactose free milk . one or more vitamins from the following group : vitamins a , b , c , d , e , k may be added to the reduced lactose or lactose free milk . vitamin a may be added in one or more of its retinol forms or an equivalent . vitamin b may be added as one or more of the following forms or an equivalent : vitamin b 1 ( thiamine ), vitamin b 2 ( riboflavin ), vitamin b 3 ( niacin ), vitamin b 5 ( pantothenic acid ), vitamin b 6 ( pyrodoxine ), vitamin b 7 ( biotin ) [ also known as vitamin h ], vitamin b 9 ( folic acid ) [ also known as vitamin m ], and vitamin b 12 ( cobalamin ). vitamin d may be added in one or more of the following forms vitamin d 2 ( ergocalciferol ) and vitamin d 3 ( cholecalciferol ) or an equivalent . vitamin k may be added as phytomenatione , menaquinone - 4 and / or menaquinone - 7 ( vitamin k 2 ) or an equivalent . the vitamin or vitamins can be added as a liquid , powder , pre - emulsion , emulsion in their equivalent acid or salt forms . the vitamin or vitamins may be added to the lactose free or lactose reduced liquid used to dilute the lactose hydrolysed milk as described above . the vitamin ( s ) or combination thereof can impart negligible nutritional value to the end product for example providing from about 0 . 0001 % rda . the rda of vitamins is set out in table 4 below . the values below are subject to change on the occurrence of legislative amendments and therefore are included as the current rda &# 39 ; s but variations of this data are possible . the maximum level of addition could be in the region of imparting about 150 % of the recommended daily allowance to the end product nutritional profile . however , the amount of vitamin added could vary depending on the particular end use , for example larger amount of vitamin ( in excess of 150 % rda ) could be added to dairy formulations for specific purposes or nutritional use . a single mineral or combination of minerals may be added to the reduced lactose or lactose free milk . the single mineral or combination of minerals may include of one or combination of the following : sodium , potassium , calcium , magnesium , phosphorous , chloride , iron , manganese , copper , iodine , selenium , molybdenum , sulphur , cobalt , nickel , fluoride , chromium and zinc . the mineral ( s ) or combination thereof may impart negligible nutritional value to the end product ( 0 . 0001 % to rda ). the rda of minerals is set out in table 5 below ). the maximum level of addition may be in the region of imparting 150 % of the recommended daily allowance to the end product nutritional profile . however , the amount of mineral added could vary depending on the particular end use , for example larger amount of mineral ( in excess of 150 % rda ) could be added to dairy formulations for specific purposes or nutritional use . the diluted single or multi - constituent blend may be mixed with partially lactose hydolysed or fully lactose hydrolysed milk . it is also possible to add the diluted mix to milk unhydrolysed milk where the enzyme can be added at the fill to pack stage of the process . the inclusion of a diluted blend may be performed under agitation , circulation or by any other means to ensure adequate mixing of the blend into the lactose hydrolysed milk . the process may include one or more additional step such as pasteurising the milk , standardising the butter fat content of the milk , separating milk into skim and cream phases , vacuum de - aeration to remove bulk air from the milk , or homogenisation . these steps are optional and may vary depending on the desired properties of the reduced lactose or lactose free milk . the process described herein may also incorporate additional optional conventional milk processing steps such as one or more of thermal treatment , homogenisation , fermentation , spraydrying , whipping , churning , aerating . fig3 depicts some of the optional processing steps . it is possible to add additional ingredients to the hydrolysed milk blend for example one or more of the following non - limiting ingredients including flavours , fruit and fruit derivatives , nuts and nut derivatives , cereal or cereal derivatives , cocoa and cocoa derivatives , carbohydrates , proteins vegetable or cereal , fats from dairy or vegetable / cereal source , sugars and sweeteners , acids , stabilisers , emulsifiers , colours , preservatives . in a typical example , raw bovine milk was separated into skim and cream phases on the basis of the percentage of butterfat in each of the phases . typically the skim phase contains less than about 0 . 1 % butter fat . both of the skim and cream phases may be used to standardise the milk to the desired fat content for example full fat milk , semi skimmed milk , or skimmed milk . the separation step allows for phases containing a different butterfat content compared to the conventional butterfat ranges of milk to be separated from the raw milk . standardisation of the desired fat content involves adjustment of the fat content of the reduced lactose milk with the addition of known fat contents cream and milk phases to obtain a desired fat content . once the fat contents of both the cream and milk ( skim ) phases have been calculated by laboratory testing , it is possible to calculate how much of the cream and skim phases to add to the reduced lactose milk to give the desired fat content using a simple equation . for example : in which firstly a series of three subtractions ( always the smaller value from the larger ) are performed 3 . b − a = f ( the difference between the fat content of both cream and milk phases )— this result is always used as a division numeral arising from the two values ( d and e ) calculated by subtractions 1 and 2 above . referring to table 6 below , the values of a to f have been tabulated for ease of reference . it is possible , to standardise the reduced lactose milk at any butterfat content desired with this process . in one embodiment , a higher butterfat content than is desired may be added at this stage and lactose free or lactose reduced liquid added at a later stage will dilute the butter fat content to the level required . standardisation can occur by manually calculating the quantity of cream and skim to be added as outlined in the above equation . alternatively , standardisation can take place by manually adding a quantity of cream to the formulation . butter fat testing of the final blend of reduced lactose milk will ensure adequate quantities of cream / skim have been called . typically , final butterfat content can range from a minimum of about 0 . 01 % to a maximum of about 12 %. although raw milk may be consumed without pasteurisation , it is usually pasteurised ( heat treated ) to destroy harmful pathogenic bacteria , viruses , protozoa , moulds and yeasts . brief heating to a high temperature can have the same effect as longer exposure to a lower temperature . pasteurising generally consists of heating the milk to a high temperature for a short period of time to substantially reduce the number of micro - organisms , thereby reducing the risk of disease . for example , pasteurising the milk for short or long shelf life products usually ranges from heating the milk to about 63 ° c . for about 15 seconds ( thermisation ) to low temperature long time treatment regimes such as heating the milk to about 63 ° c . for about 30 min , to high temperature short time ( htst ) heat treatment of milk that requires heating the milk to at least about 72 ° c . for at least about 15 seconds , or in the case of cream heating the cream to at least about 80 ° c . for at least about 1 second . milk may also be subjected to ultra high temperature ( uht ) pasteurisation that involves heating the milk to at least about 125 ° c . for at least about 2 seconds , or at least about 135 ° c . for at least 2 seconds . bactofugation is a process which is specifically designed to separate micro - organisms from milk . bactofugation is an efficient method of removing heat resistant spores from the milk . the bactofuge technology can make a useful complement to thermisation , pasteurisation and sterilisation as described above and is an optional treatment step in the process described herein . although milk may be consumed without homogenisation , it is usually homogenised to achieve the desired texture consistency and to prevent larger fat globules from rising or creaming off the body of the milk to form a layer at the top . homogenisation primarily disrupts fat globules into smaller globules consequently diminishing creaming and the tendency for globules to clump or coalesce . homogenisation can be carried out using single stage or two stage homogenisation processes depending on the desired end product . single stage homogenisation can be used for products that require high viscosity . two stage homogenisation can be used for products with a high fat content or when high homogenisation efficiency is desired . the effect of homogenisation on the end product has many advantages particularly in the case of mammalian milk . included in the list of advantages is a whiter , fuller bodied flavour , better mouthfeel with reduced sensitivity to fat oxidation . it is not suitable to include a homogenisation step in the processing of certain products for example , some creams and cheese production . a pre - heating step is required before and during the homogenising step to ensure adequate preparation of the fat globule in order for it to be broken down into smaller uniform fat globules . preheating may also be used in the production of cheese and yogurt to varying degrees . the step of preheating generally includes heating to a temperature between about 40 ° c . and about 70 ° c . pasteurising , separating , standardising and homogenisation are common processing steps in milk production but are not required to produce consumable dairy products such as cheese , butter , yogurts and the like . one or more of the optional processing steps may be included or omitted from the process described herein depending on the final product being made . some dairy products may also undergo processing steps in addition to or apart from the processing steps described herein . the reduced lactose or lactose free milk described herein can be used to make the following products — a stand alone lactose reduced or lactose free milk , flavoured milk , butter milk , acidified milk , flavoured buttermilk , flavoured acidified milk , fruit and milk combination , or as a lactose free or lactose reduced cream , sour cream , crême fraiche , whipped cream , culinary cream , pouring cream , coffee cream , clotted cream , butter ( sweet cream or cultured / sour ), butter ( salted / unsalted ), dairy spread , dairy / vegetable oil combination spread , margarine , buttermilk , cheese — all types , quarg , yogurt , drinking yogurt , lassi , kefir , milk powder , whole milk powder , lactose free skimmed milk powder , fat filled milk powder , condensed milk , evaporated milk , ice - cream , custard , mousse or combination thereof . the invention will be more clearly understood from the following examples . bovine milk was used in the following examples however , mammalian milk from other species , either singly or a combination thereof , are suitable for use with the process described herein . milk is a nutritious fluid secreted by the mammary glands of female mammals for the nourishment of their young . the female ability to produce milk is one of the defining characteristics of mammals . mammalian raw milk from cows , goats , sheep , horses , donkeys , camels , buffalo , yaks , reindeer , moose or humans or combinations thereof may be used in the process described herein . in this example , a semi - skimmed lactose containing milk with average nutritional composition per 100 ml was used as a comparative example . the standard semi - skimmed milk was used without any nutritional alterations or any additional processing further to the standard dairy practices known in the art of dairy processing . the nutritional values described in table 6 are average in nature and are subject to change dependant on seasonal variation and species of animal used to produce the milk . the enzymatically hydrolysed milk was reformulated to standardise the nutritional profile of the reduced lactose milk compared to untreated milk . the reduced lactose milk was diluted with 10 % lactose reduced liquid such as water to dilute the sweetness caused by the presence of glucose and galactose . the addition of lactose reduced liquid to the reduced lactose milk also has the effect of diluting the concentration of other nutritional constituents of the milk such as protein , calcium , potassium and vitamin b 2 . in this example the concentration of protein , calcium , potassium and vitamin b 2 in the reduced lactose milk was also reformulated . butterfat was standardised at a higher level than normal dairy practices to compensate for the 10 % added lactose reduced liquid included in this example . in more detail , the step involving protein , mineral ( s ) and vitamin ( s ) may be represented as follows : add protein ( one or more milk proteins selected from the following groups consisting of tmp ( total milk protein ), mpc ( milk protein concentrate ), mpi ( milk protein isolate ), zero lactose skimmed milk powder , wpi ( whey protein isolate ), casein , casein salts and wpc ( whey protein concentrate ), or any other suitable dairy protein ). the protein may also derive from a non - dairy vegetable or cereal protein source e . g . wheat , rice , soya proteins or fungal source mycoproteins . quantity for the purposes of this example is 0 . 34 g to achieve 3 . 4 g / 100 ml as a desired quantity in the end product . add calcium ( one of more calcium salts selected for the following but not limited to carbonate , chloride , gluconate , lactate , phosphate or other suitable calcium salt ). quantity required for the purposes of this example is 12 mg / 100 ml to achieve 120 mg / 100 ml as a desired quantity in the end product . add potassium ( one or more of the following chloride , hydroxide , carbonate or other suitable potassium source for a food application ). quantity required for the purposes of this example is 15 mg / 100 ml to achieve 150 mg / 100 ml as a desired quantity in the end product . add riboflavin ( vitamin b 2 ). quantity required for this example is 0 . 024 mg / 100 ml or 0 . 9 mg / 100 ml in order to achieve 15 % rda . overdosage will be required to ensure adequate levels at end of shelf life . adding 10 % lactose reduced liquid to the reduced lactose milk dilutes the fat content of the milk . there are two options for standardising the fat content compared to non - processed milk . the first option is to separate and standardise the butterfat at a higher level than standard milk to achieve the desired endpoint . in this case the desired end point is 1 . 5 g / 100 ml fat to achieve a semi - skimmed milk . butterfat standardisation would be 1 . 65 g / 100 ml ( 0 . 15 g / 100 ml to be compensated for ) prior to addition of lactose reduced liquid in order to achieve the desired endpoint of fat content 1 . 5 g / 100 ml . calculation example of quantities of cream and skim phase of known butterfat contents is outlined herein . the second option is to add cream at the same time as diluting the reduced lactose milk with lactose reduced liquid in order to achieve 1 . 5 g fat per 100 ml . the example calculation will determine the quantity of cream of a known butterfat content to add to the milk . it is also possible to standardise the fat content to any level desired from 0 . 01 g / 100 ml to 12 % ( 12 g / 100 ml ) butterfat for milk . alternatively , depending on the requirements for the final product , it may not be necessary to alter the butterfat standardisation process in the reduced lactose milk . adding 10 % lactose reduced liquid will have a diluting effect on protein content 100 ml from 3 . 4 g to 3 . 06 g ( 10 % reduction ). therefore to meet the desired protein nutritional or sensory composition of 3 . 4 g / 100 ml 0 . 34 g / 100 ml ( 10 % of 3 . 4 g ) of protein was added . it is possible to use a single protein or a combination of proteins to reformulate the reduced lactose milk . protein from one or more milk , proteins selected from the following groups consisting of tmp ( total milk protein ), mpc ( milk protein concentrate ), mpi ( milk protein isolate ), zero lactose skimmed milk powder , wpi ( whey protein isolate ), casein , casein salts and wpc ( whey protein concentrate ), or any other suitable dairy protein is possible . the protein may also derive from a non - dairy vegetable or cereal protein source e . g . wheat , rice , soya proteins , or fungal source mycoproteins . it is also possible to fortify the reduced lactose milk with protein in higher amounts than 10 %. alternatively , depending on the requirements for the final product , it may not be necessary to alter the protein concentration in the reduced lactose milk . adding 10 % lactose reduced liquid reduced the calcium content per 100 ml from 120 mg to 108 mg ( 10 % reduction ). therefore to meet the desired nutritional composition 12 mg ( 10 % of 120 mg ) of calcium was added . one or more calcium salts selected for the following but is not limited to carbonate , chloride , gluconate , lactate , phosphate or other suitable calcium salt can be used . quantity required for the purposes of this example is 12 mg / 100 ml to achieve 120 mg / 100 ml as a desired quantity in the end product . it is possible with this patent invention to alter the nutritional aspects if desired , but it is also possible to add ingredients for sensory improvement reasons only . it is also possible to fortify the reduced lactose milk with calcium up to a level of 150 % rda in the end product . alternatively , depending on the requirements for the final product , it may not be necessary to alter the calcium concentration in the reduced lactose milk . adding 10 % lactose reduced liquid reduced the potassium content per 100 ml from 150 mg to 135 mg ( 10 % reduction ). therefore if desired to include potassium as a mineral in the formulation to meet the desired nutritional composition 15 mg ( 10 % of 150 mg ) of potassium will need to be added . in some circumstances , it may be necessary to overdose the levels of potassium to be added to the reduced lactose milk to overcome potassium content losses that may be associated with heat treatment or natural losses of potassium that may occur throughout shelf life . potassium from one or more of the following but not limited to chloride , hydroxide , carbonate or other suitable potassium source for a food application is possible . quantity required for the purposes of this example is 15 mg / 100 ml to achieve 150 mg / 100 ml as a desired quantity in the end product . it is also possible to fortify the reduced lactose milk with potassium up to a level of 150 % rda in the end product . alternatively , depending on the requirements for the final product , it may not be necessary to alter the potassium concentration in the reduced lactose milk . adding 10 % lactose reduced liquid reduced the riboflavin content per 100 ml from 0 . 240 mg to 0 . 216 mg per 100 ml . if it is desired to achieve the original nutritional level for vitamin b 2 for non - treated milk to the lactose reduced counterpart it is necessary to add back the 10 % ( 0 . 024 mg / 100 ml ) of vitamin b 2 . if on the other hand it is desired to have riboflavin at the recommended daily allowance ( rda ) concentration in the end product , as a general rule 15 % of the rda is seen as a starting point referring to 100 g or 100 ml of the product relating to rda for making a nutrient claim . the rda for riboflavin is 6 mg , 15 % of which is 0 . 9 mg . it is possible to add at least 0 . 9 mg of riboflavin to the lactose milk if the end product is required to contain riboflavin at an rda concentration . vitamins are in most cases sensitive to heat and losses can occur due to heat treatment . losses of vitamins can also occur throughout the shelf life , therefore an excess of riboflavin may be added in order to achieve the desired final concentration . the quantity of riboflavin ( vitamin b 2 ) required for this example is 0 . 024 g / 100 ml to achieve a similar nutrient profile as the untreated semi - skimmed milk for this vitamin or 0 . 9 mg / 100 ml in order to achieve 15 % of the rda . it is also possible to fortify the reduced lactose milk with riboflavin up to a level of 150 % rda in the end product . alternatively , depending on the requirements for the final product , it may not be necessary to alter the riboflavin concentration in the reduced lactose milk . overdosage will be required to ensure adequate levels at end of shelf life . if the mouthfeel or the viscosity of the liquid was too thin it is also possible to add one or more but not limited to the following , gums , stabilisers , starches and emulsifying ingredients . table 7 below details the nutritional content of reformulated reduced lactose milk compared to standard milk . in the invention the final milk product will maintain the organoleptic qualities with an acceptable level of sweetness and mouthfeel similar to or substantially the same to those of lactose containing milk counterpart outlined above . it is a feature of the reduced lactose or lactose free milk product that none , one or combination of vitamins , minerals , butterfat , protein can be manipulated as desired by the manufacturer . it is also a feature of the reduced lactose or lactose free milk product that it can be nutritionally superior to the lactose containing counterpart . the calorific content of the reduced lactose or lactose free milk product can be reduced significantly as desired . in this example a lactose reduced chocolate flavoured milk product was prepared which aims to have , in some cases , superior nutritional attributes similar nutritional profile to untreated milk using a 50 % inclusion of lactose reduced or lactose free liquid . diluting the enzyme hydrolysed milk product to reduce the sweetness imported by the presence of glucose and galactose required reformulation of the concentration of protein , calcium , carbohydrate and fat to standardise the nutritional content of the chocolate flavoured reduced lactose milk compared to a lactose containing chocolate flavoured milk . it is optional to alter the nutritional aspects of the formulation as laid out in this example . it is also optional to simply add one or more of the following ingredients gums , stabilisers , starches or emulsifiers to increase the mouthfeel or body of the milk . the addition of 50 % lactose free or lactose reduced liquid to the reduced lactose milk resulted in a 50 % reduction in protein content ( 4 . 5 g to 2 . 25 g per 100 ml ). this 50 % reduction includes the protein concentration in the reduced lactose milk and also any additional protein imparted by the ingredients added to produce chocolate flavoured reduced lactose milk . for the purposes of this example , flavouring and stabilising ingredients can be added with the 50 % lactose free or lactose reduced liquid . 2 . 25 g / 100 ml of protein will need to be added if the end product is to have a similar nutritional endpoint to the original non - treated counterpart . alternatively , if the end product is to be a high protein drink then additional protein can be added . if a low protein final product is required it may not be necessary to add protein to the reduced lactose milk . it is possible to use a single protein or a combination of proteins to reformulate the reduced lactose milk . protein from one or more milk proteins selected from the following groups consisting of tmp ( total milk protein ), mpc ( milk protein concentrate ), mpi ( milk protein isolate ), zero lactose skimmed milk powder , wpi ( whey protein isolate ), casein , casein salts and wpc ( whey protein concentrate ), or any other suitable dairy protein is possible . the protein may also derive from a non - dairy vegetable or cereal protein source e . g . wheat , rice , soya proteins , or fungal source mycoproteins . it is also possible to fortify the reduced lactose milk with protein in higher amounts than 50 %. alternatively , depending on the requirements for the final product , it may not be necessary to alter the protein concentration in the reduced lactose milk . the addition of 50 % lactose free or lactose reduced liquid to the reduced lactose milk will have a 50 % reduction knock on effect in calcium content ( 118 mg to 59 mg ). if desired to equal the original calcium content it is possible to add any suitable calcium salt to levels of 59 mg / 100 ml in order to meet 118 mg / 100 ml as per the calcium content of the standard lactose containing milk . as is the case with all nutrients , it is possible to exceed the original nutritional values levels as desired . if a manufacturer wishes to reach 20 % of the rda for calcium for instance ( 160 mg per 100 ml where 800 mg is the rda for calcium ) it is possible to add enough calcium ( 101 mg / 100 ml in this case ) to reach this level . the amount of calcium added is dependent on the amount of calcium required in the final product , taking into account the loss of some calcium due to further processing of the product for example heat treating . one or more calcium salts selected for the following but not limited to carbonate , chloride , gluconate , lactate , phosphate or other suitable calcium salt can be used . quantity required for the purposes of this example is 59 mg / 100 ml to achieve 118 mg / 100 ml as a desired quantity in the end product . in some circumstances , it may be necessary to overdose the levels of calcium to be added to the reduced lactose milk to overcome calcium content losses that may be associated with heat treatment or natural losses of calcium that may occur throughout shelf life . it is also possible to fortify the reduced lactose milk with calcium up to a level of 150 % rda in the end product . alternatively , depending on the requirements for the final product , it may not be necessary to alter the calcium concentration in the reduced lactose milk . fat content is also reduced in this example due to the addition of 50 % lactose free or lactose reduced liquid to the lactose reduced milk ( 1 . 5 g / 100 ml to 0 . 75 g per 100 ml ). the remaining 0 . 3 g or so of fat comes from the chocolate ingredients . as outlined in example 1 above , it is possible to separate the milk at a higher level ( compared to standard lactose containing milk ) in order to achieve a higher fat content . it is also possible to add lactose reduced / lactose free cream to achieve a different butterfat content if desired . the first option is to separate and standardise the butterfat at a higher level to standard milk as part of this invention to achieve the desired endpoint . butterfat standardisation would need to be 2 . 25 g / 100 ml ( 0 . 75 g / 100 ml to be compensated for ) prior to addition of lactose free or lactose reduced liquid in order to achieve the desired endpoint of fat content 1 . 5 g / 100 ml . calculation example of quantities of cream and skim phase of known butterfat contents is outlined herein . the second option is to add cream at the same time as diluting the reduced lactose milk with lactose free or lactose reduced liquid in order to achieve 1 . 5 g fat per 100 ml . the example calculation will determine the quantity of cream of a known butterfat content to add to the milk . it is also possible to standardise the fat content to any level desired from 0 . 01 g / 100 ml to 12 % ( 12 g / 100 ml ) butterfat for milk . alternatively , depending on the requirements for the final product , it may not be necessary to alter the butterfat standardisation process in the reduced lactose milk . table 8 below details the nutritional content of reformulated reduced lactose chocolate flavoured semi - skimmed bovine milk compared to lactose containing semi - skimmed chocolate flavoured bovine milk . 1 . miller , g . d ., et al ., benefits of dairy product consumption on blood pressure in humans : a summary of the biochemical literature . journal of the american college of nutrition , 2000 . 19 : p 1475 - 1645 2 . cho , e ., s . a . smith warner , and d . spiegelman , dairy foods , calcium and colorectal cancer : a pooled analysis of 10 cohort studies . journal of the national cancer institute , 2004 . 96 : p 1015 - 1022 3 . bulhoes , a . c ., et . al . 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( 1993 ). nutrition and gene expression . boca raton : crc press . isbn 0 - 8493 - 6961 - 4 .