NUTRIENTS AND COMPOSITION OF GOAT MILK IN COMPARISON WITH COW AND HUMAN MILK
The composition of goat milk is given in the following table which shows that the goat milk is similar in composition to cow and human milk with few exceptions.
| Constituents |
Goat milk |
Cow milk |
Human milk |
Total solid % |
12.97 |
12.01 |
12.50 |
Energy in Kilocalories
Energy in Kilojoules |
69
288 |
61
257 |
70
291 |
Protein % |
3.56 |
3.29 |
1.03 |
Lipid % |
4.14 |
3.34 |
4.38 |
Carbohydrate % |
4.45 |
4.6 |
6.89 |
Ash % |
0.82 |
0.72 |
0.20 |
Calcium (mg) |
134 |
119 |
32 |
Iron (mg) |
0.05 |
0.05 |
0.03 |
Magnesium (mg) |
14 |
13 |
3 |
Phosphorous (mg) |
111 |
93 |
14 |
Potassium (mg) |
204 |
152 |
51 |
Sodium (mg) |
50 |
49 |
17 |
Zinc (mg) |
0.30 |
0.38 |
0.17 |
Ascorbic acid (mg) |
1.29 |
0.94 |
5 |
Thiamine (mcg) |
40 |
40 |
20 |
Riboflavin (mg) |
0.138 |
0.162 |
0.036 |
Niacin (mg) |
0.277 |
0.084 |
0.177 |
Pantothenic acid |
0.310 |
0.314 |
0.223 |
Vitamin B6 (mcg) |
60 |
60 |
10 |
Folacin (mcg) |
1 |
6 |
5 |
Vitamin B12 (mcg) |
0.065 |
0.0357 |
0.045 |
Vitamin A (mcg) |
44 |
52 |
58 |
Vitamin D (mcg) |
0.11 |
0.03 |
0.04 |
Vitamin E (mg) |
0.03 |
0.09 |
0.34 |
Vitamin C (mg) |
1 |
1 |
4 |
Physico-chemical properties of Goat Milk
The specific gravity of goat and cow milk is almost similar in nature (the specific gravity ranges between 1.028 and 1.030). The viscosity of goat milk is 13.4 mP at 27°C, which is marginally lower than cow milk, but the value of refractive index lies in between that of cow and buffalo milk.
The electrical conductivity of goat milk ranges between 0.0101 and 0.0188 ohm-1 cm-1. The titratable acidity expressed as percentage of lactic acid ranges between 0.11 and 0.18, which is again within the range encountered in cow milk.
The mean pH value of goat milk varies from 6.5 to 6.9 whereas it is 6.6 to 6.8 in case of cow milk. The value of curd tension test (which measures the resistance in g which a special multi bladed curd knife encounters in its passage through the coagulated milk) of goat milk is well below than that of cow milk.The average value with pepsin calcium chloride is 36. This is responsible for better digestibility in goat milk as compared to cow milk.
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