The Importance of Testing pH in Dairy Products

Testing the pH in milk and dairy products is key to detecting impurities and signs of infection when the milk is collected for transport. During the sterilization process, it is important to check the pH, as the lower the pH, the faster the process. However, a lower pH in milk may also indicate that the cows that produced the milk may have an infection.

The Importance of pH in Cheese Production

Milk used in cheese production needs to be of good quality. The pH determines whether the cheese is soft or firm. pH is also checked during cheese preparation, milk and cream aging. Pathogen growth in fresh and soft varieties can be significantly slowed by ensuring that the pH remains within the 4.1 and 5.3 range.

The Importance of Testing pH in Butter

During the production of butter, pH control is very important. After pasteurization, the cream is cooled and needs to be kept at a strict pH of 6.70 to 6.85 to produce a sweet butter. To make sour cream, citric acid extract is added to sour the cream to pH 4.6 -5.0. For most butter products, a lower pH increases the shelf life of the product.

The Importance of Testing the pH of Yogurt

When producing yoghurt, cooling cultured milk can only be started when the acidification has reached a pH of 4.4 to 4.6. For fruity yogurts, the pH of the added fruit needs to be the same as the yogurt itself to avoid any adverse reactions at the end of the cycle. Ideally, finished yogurt should have a pH of 4.0 to 4.4 to keep it longer.