Evaluación de los parámetros de calidad microbiológicos, fisicoquímicos y presencia de glicomacropéptido de caseína (cGMP) en leche cruda de la empresa de lácteos la esmeralda ubicada en Madrid-Cundinamarca.

Abstract

The dairy sector worldwide is one of the most in-demand agri-food systems. However, milk is considered one of the foods with the highest rate of adulteration due to its composition. Among the most common adulterants in milk are water, neutralizers to camouflage acidity levels, and whey, which alters the density and protein values in milk. On this basis, Lácteos La Esmeralda, a company dedicated to the manufacture of UHT milk, carried out an evaluation of the main physicochemical and microbiological quality parameters in seven routes of raw milk entering the processing plant during the months of March, April and May 2024. At the physicochemical level, aspects such as density, fat content, titratable acidity and protein content were analyzed, these were determined manually and with the help of an Ekomilk. On the other hand, the microbiological parameters included the mesophilic aerobic count, the reductase test and the somatic cell count. Finally, the presence of casein glycomacropeptide (cGMP) was identified qualitatively using a rapid detection kit and its quantitative determination by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis with the support of an external laboratory. The results showed that the raw milk analyzed complies with the physicochemical requirements established by decree 616 of 2006. The mesophilic aerobic count showed that only 29% of the routes met the quality standards. The reductase test indicated that 38% of the routes presented good quality milk. Likewise, 43% of the routes presented low somatic cell counts. In conclusion, these results indicate that the overall quality of milk is acceptable, but monitoring and corrective measures are required in terms of microbiological quality.