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 | | ORGANIC MILK IS BETTER FOR YOU, SAY SCIENTISTS | | | International Food Ingredients | | 06/06/2008 | | | - Only seen on www.ifi-online.com -
Cows grazed on organic farms provide milk with much higher levels of beneficial fatty acids, antioxidants and vitamins than conventionally fed cows, according to scientists at Newcastle University in the UK. They also showed that the quality of the milk varies across the seasons.
‘We have shown that significant seasonal differences exist, with nutritionally desirable fatty acids and antioxidants being highest during the summer,when the cows are eating fresh grass and clover,’ says Gillian Butler, livestock project manager for the Nafferton Ecological Farming Group at the university, who led the project. ‘We have known for some time that what cows are fed has a big influence on milk quality. What is different about this research is that it clearly shows that on organic farms, letting cows graze naturally, using forage-based diet, is the most important reason for the differences in the composition between organic and conventional milk.’
In a study published in the Journal of Science of Food and Agriculture, the researchers looked at the effects of seasonal and indoor or outdoor feeding differences on the fatty acid profile of the milk. They also compared the levels of other important nutrients, including different carotenoids, the various isomers of vitamin E, and isomers of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA).
Milk is an important source of the most beneficial forms of these nutrients. CLA, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin E and carotenoids are all present in milk, and have been linked with health benefits such as a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. However, synthetic supplements containing these ingredients often contain a different balance of their various forms than occur naturally in products such as milk. They are more likely to include less desirable fatty acids such as omega-6 and CLA-10, whereas the more desirable omega-3 and CLA-9 forms predominate in milk.
The Newcastle team, working with scientists from the Danish Institute for Agricultural Science, found that cows who were allowed to graze naturally from March to November had much higher levels of the nutritionally desirable fatty acids and antioxidants – and lower levels of undesirable ones – as a direct result of the fact that they spent most of their time outdoors and mostly ate fresh grass. In particular, levels of CLA-9 were 60% higher in summer. In the winter, when the cows are kept inside and have a different diet, the levels of the beneficial components in the milk were lower.
One of the organic farmers included in the study, Gordon Tweddle of the Acorn Dairy in County Durham, says his customers tell him that the milk tastes better than its traditionally produced counterpart. ‘It is satisfying to have the scientific explanation as to why it is also nutritionally better,’ he says.
Butler believes that switching to organic milk provides a good way of increasing the intake of nutritionally desirable fatty acids, vitamins and antioxidants, without increasing the intake of less desirable fatty acids or synthetic forms of vitamin E. ‘In organic milk, the omega-3 levels increase, but the omega-6 does not,’ she says. ‘This helps to improve the crucial ratio between the two.’ | |
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