ABSTRACT
Long-life milk products are milk products made from milk, cream, or whey or dairy-based products that have been preserved by heat treatment or most often by water removal. Long-life milk products are also used for supplies to emergency areas and in catastrophes. Milk has to meet the same high quality requirements for use as market milk or in the manufacture of long-life milk products. A key aspect for the manufacture of long-life products is the extension of the shelf life and preservation of milk ingredients. The technologies and unit operations for long-life products are less product specific but are based on general principles and laws of thermal process technology. The objective in manufacturing is complete germ inactivation, so the thermal load on milk is very high, which has negative effects on the proteins; on the other hand, a low level of microorganisms is advantageous.
