DIFFERENTIATION OF MILKS AND CHEESES ACCORDING TO SPECIES BASED ON THE MINERAL-CONTENT

The mineral composition of 113 samples of ewes', cows', and goats' milk and 68 samples of different types of pure-milk cheeses made from the milks of these species was analysed. Stepwise discriminant analysis of the milk samples yielded the variables K/Mg, Na/Ca, Zn, Cu/Zn, and Cu/Na as the most useful in differentiating the samples, achieving correct classification in 98.2% of cases. The most useful variables for the cheese samples were Fe/K, Na/Ca, Zn/Cu, Na/Mg, and Zn, which yielded correct classification in 97.1 % of cases. The three goat's milk cheeses were successfully distinguished using the variables K/Zn, Fe/Cu, and P.