Food industry: where does buttermilk go?
I've recently home- made butter.
Starting from 500g of cream I've obtained, let's say, 250g of butter and 250g of buttermilk.
The fairly big amount of by-product/scrap, the buttermilk, due to:
- half of the initial cream mass
- the high cost of cream
- (at least in Italy) it is a ingredient used in really few recipes
This, let me think on how dairy industry deals with it, because I do not see many uses of buttermilk so:
- Does dairy industry produce buttermilk in that way?
- Are there any other uses for buttermilk?
- Is buttermilk converted into other food?
EDIT: First, mine it is a pure curiosity. I do not need to use buttermilk anywhere or in any recipe.
Second, here in Italy, buttermilk is a very rare product: I've never neither seen my mother or my grandmother using buttermilk in recipes for e.g. cakes nor listed as ingredient in industrial cakes or other desserts; furthermore, I've never used it as beverage. Even tough, Google returns some recipes with buttermilk.
Best Answer
If it's made from 'sweet cream', and not soured milk (it's easier to churn soured milk, so this was typical in the old days), then what's left is skim milk ... although there might be an extra buttery taste to it.
Some of it's used to make powdered milk; I don't know if any is actually resold as skim milk. It's possible that cultures are added to make 'buttermilk'. And you might think 'there'd be way too much milk powder left over vs. the amount of butter made' ... but it's used in protein powders for body builders and infant formula.
... and it can be used for animal feed. (and it's safer than other milk by-products, as it won't cause as much indigestion as the whey left over from cheese making (salty), or drained from greek yogurt (acidic).
Update: I was basing my answer on something that I saw years ago (How It's Made, Unwrapped, some other similar TV show), and some knowledge of uses of powdered milk. However, in doing some additional research:
Skim milk is separated off before the butter making process. It's done by centrifuge, so the input to the butter making process is higher fat content (and lower moisture) than what a home butter-maker would be working with.
Protein powders are typically made from whey powder, not non-fat milk powder
Much powdered milk gets shipped to developing countries, as it's cheaper to ship and store. (less weight and volume, and doesn't need refrigeration) ... but much of that is full-fat powdered milk
Non-fat milk powder is used in a lot of baker products and processed foods, as it can serve as a thickener, increases protein content, and promotes browning of baked goods. (and it can be lower cost, due to reduced shipping and storage costs) So when you see 'milk' on an ingredient list, it might actually be powdered milk.
So, there's probably not as much left over as we'd expect based solely on knowledge of home butter churning and the amount of butter production. And I was off on where all of the non-fat powdered milk gets used.
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Quick Answer about "Food industry: where does buttermilk go?"
In the dairy industry, buttermilk is used for the production of beverages, as an ingredient of ice cream, as an additive to increase the thermal stability of reconstituted condensed milk and for the improvement of structure, sensory characteristics and yield of low-fat yogurt and cheese [3,11,[21][22][23][24][25]. ...Where is buttermilk used?
Buttermilk is used when making quick breads such as pancakes, waffles, biscuits and muffins. Buttermilk is made up of a variety of acids \u2013 the results of the fermentation process, which give baked goods a couple of benefits. First, the acidity provides tangy flavor to balance all kinds of sweet baked treats.What is buttermilk of dairy industry?
buttermilk, the fluid remaining when the fat is removed by churning cream into butter. It was formerly used as a beverage, but today it is mostly condensed or dried for use in the baking and frozen desserts industry.Is buttermilk the byproduct?
Buttermilk is the low-fat portion of milk or cream remaining after it has been churned to make butter. Today, buttermilk is not a byproduct of butter-making, but is made from nonfat or low-fat milk that is \u201ccultured\u201d with lactic acid bacteria.Why is buttermilk used in food?
What Is Buttermilk Used For? Buttermilk makes almost everything better. In baked goods like pancakes, waffles, cakes, and biscuits, its natural acidity works with other leavenings to produce a light and tender finish without adding extra fat. Its thickness and tart taste add body and flavor to salad dressings and dips.🔵 Truth About Buttermilk - What Is It? How To Substitute?
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