Shelf-Stable Acidified Milk Concentrate Base
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing acidified milk-based beverages require refrigeration and have limited shelf life, making them unsuitable for convenient consumption and use in beverage dispensing machines, as they are typically available as 'ready-to-drink' products with complex storage and hygiene concerns.
Innovation Solution
A shelf-stable, concentrated base composition is developed by heating milk proteins, mixing with sweeteners and stabilizers, and acidifying to a specific pH range, which can be diluted with water in a beverage dispensing machine to create a stable acidified milk beverage with controlled pH and protein content, ensuring stability and hygiene.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If acidified milk-based beverages are prepared as ready-to-drink products, then they provide immediate consumption convenience, but they require refrigeration and have limited shelf life
Solution Approach 1:
The beverage system is divided into two segments: a shelf-stable concentrated base composition that can be stored at ambient temperature, and water that is added at the point of use. This segmentation allows the base composition to be stored without refrigeration while maintaining the ability to prepare the final beverage product when needed, thus resolving the contradiction between shelf life and consumption convenience.
Solution Approach 2:
The base composition is prepared in advance with all necessary ingredients (milk proteins, sweeteners, acidulants, stabilizers) pre-combined and stabilized through heat treatment and pH adjustment. This preliminary action allows the concentrated base to be stored stably at ambient temperature for extended periods, and then simply diluted with water when consumption is desired, eliminating the need for refrigeration while maintaining beverage quality.
2Stability of the object's composition
If refrigeration is used to extend shelf life of acidified milk beverages, then storage stability is improved, but storage complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The base composition undergoes parameter changes through heat treatment (80-120°C for 5-30 minutes) and pH adjustment (3.0-3.8) that fundamentally alter its stability characteristics. These parameter changes denature milk proteins and stabilize the composition, allowing it to be stored at ambient temperature without refrigeration, thus achieving storage stability without the complexity of refrigeration infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses a concentrated base composition that can be stored indefinitely at ambient temperature, replacing the need for expensive refrigeration systems. The concentrate acts as a stable, long-lasting product that only requires simple water addition for preparation, eliminating complex storage requirements while maintaining beverage quality.
3Stability of the object's composition
If milk and acid are stored separately and mixed on demand, then beverage stability is improved, but preparation complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
Milk proteins, sweeteners, acidulants, and stabilizers are merged into a single pre-formulated concentrated base composition. This merging eliminates the need for separate storage and mixing of individual components, as all ingredients are already combined in the correct proportions and stabilized together through heat treatment and pH adjustment, thus achieving beverage stability without preparation complexity.
4Reliability
If concentrated base composition is used for dispensing, then hygiene concerns are reduced, but dilution control precision must be maintained
Solution Approach 1:
The concentrated base composition is designed to be self-diluting, where the act of adding water to the concentrate automatically achieves the correct final concentration and pH. The pre-formulated base contains all necessary ingredients in precise proportions, so that simple dilution with water (without requiring precise measurement or complex control systems) produces a stable, hygienic beverage, thus achieving hygiene reliability without demanding high dilution control precision.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method provides a stable, shelf-stable acidified milk beverage that maintains physical stability for at least 1 hour after dispensing, offering convenience and reduced hygiene concerns, suitable for use in beverage dispensing machines with controlled dilution conditions.
Implementation Method 1
heating a source of milk proteins at about 80 to about 120° C over a period of about 1 to about 20 minutes to achieve denaturising of the said milk proteins
Implementation Method 2
to achieve denaturising of the said milk proteins
Implementation Method 3
bringing the above mixture to a pH of about 3.0 to about 3.8 while mixing it with an acidifying agent
Data Source
AI summary
A shelf-stable liquid base composition useful for preparing acidified milk based beverages, e.g. by dilution with water in a beverage dispensing machine, comprises: - from about 2 to about 10 weight % of denatured milk proteins expressed as solid-not-fat (SNF) milk components; - from about 15 to about 80 weight %, expressed as sugar equivalents, of a carbohydrate based or non carbohydrate based sweetener; - from about 0.35 to about 1.50 weight % of a carbohydrate based stabilizer; and - an acidifying agent present in amounts necessary for achieving a pH of about 3.0 to about 3.8 of the said base composition. Methods for preparing such a bas composition and acidified milk based beverages prepared by means of such a base composition.