Reconstitution properties of micellar casein powder: Effects of composition and storage

A problem associated with micellar casein (MC) powders is their poor reconstitution properties. In this study, we prepared MCs with different salt and protein compositions and having different reconstitutabilities directly after production. Reconstitutability further decreased during storage at 30 °C. Differential scanning calorimetry, infrared spectroscopy, and small angle X-ray scattering showed that the powders were very similar on a molecular or sub-micellar level, indicating that the loss of reconstitutability is probably controlled by higher order structural changes, such as cross-linking between casein micelles, possibly involving intermolecular β-sheet formation. The reconstitutability of MC could be improved by adding sodium caseinate to the concentrated milk before spray drying. This novel approach to improve reconstitutability can easily be incorporated into the existing processing protocol. We propose two possible mechanisms for the protecting effect of the non-micellar caseins.