Yogurt is a widely consumed dairy products with its good source of nutritional properties that potentially benefits human health⁸. The texture of yogurt is an important quality parameter as its taste and flavour greatly affect their stability and consumers’ acceptance^2,6.

Syneresis (whey separation) is a common textural defect in fermented milk products that could be controlled¹². It refers to the shrinkage of gel that occurs along with expulsion of liquid or whey separation due to instability of the gel network^8,13. Some possible reasons that lead to whey-off in acid gels include high incubation temperature, excessive whey protein to casein ratio, low solids content and physical mishandling of the product during processing, storage and transportation¹². To overcome these glitches, the most common approach is the use of different stabilisers to interact with the casein network⁵.

Keeping Yogurt Stable with Stabilisers

Stabilisers not only help in preventing syneresis, it also improves the body and texture by increasing firmness in yogurt¹. According to a systemic study, gelatin appeared to be the best hydrocolloid (among xanthan gum, carrageenan, modified starch) due to its ability to reduce syneresis, increase texture, viscosity, gel strength and lubrication properties in skim yogurt⁷. Next, experimental results have shown addition of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) at 0.5% give rise to the lowest syneresis with 90.66% stabilization and storage life of 22 days¹¹.

Several investigations have confirmed the potential of xanthan gum and guar gum to improve yogurt stability and minimise issues with syneresis^3,5,6. Yogurt made with pectin plus whey protein concentrate had significantly higher water holding capacity (∼56%) and exhibited 15% less susceptibility to syneresis compared to the control group⁴. Moreover, starch is preferred in the yogurt industry due to its good thickening effect and its ability to reduce wheying-off in yogurt significantly, regardless of the starch type^9,10,12.

In Essence,

Stabilisers are important ingredients in manufactured yogurt or other dairy products due to their capacity to improve viscosity and decrease wheying-off during storage. At DPO, we are honoured to be in partnership with Palsgaard to bring you a range of tailor-made emulsifier and stabiliser blends that will help satisfy consumer desires for smooth, creamy and stable dairy products.

References

¹Bhattarai, N., Pradhananga, M., & Mishra, S. (2016). Effects of Various Stabilizers on Sensorial Quality of Yoghurt. Sunsari Technical College Journal, 2(1), 7-12. https://doi.org/10.3126/stcj.v2i1.14790

²El Bouchikhi, S., Pagès, P., El Alaoui, Y., Ibrahimi, A., & Bensouda, Y. (2019). Syneresis investigations of lacto-fermented sodium caseinate in a mixed model system. BMC Biotechnology, 19(1), 57. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12896-019-0539-1

³Gupta, S., & Variyar, P. (2018). Guar Gum: A Versatile Polymer for the Food Industry. Biopolymers For Food Design, 383-407. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-12-811449-0.00012-8

⁴Gyawali, R., & Ibrahim, S. (2018). Addition of pectin and whey protein concentrate minimises the generation of acid whey in Greek-style yogurt. Journal Of Dairy Research, 85(2), 238-242. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0022029918000109

⁵Hematyar, N., Samarin, A. M., Poorazarang, H., & Elhamirad, A. H. (2012). Effect of Gums on Yogurt Characteristics. World Applied Sciences Journal, 20(5), 661-665.

⁶Macit, E., & Bakirci, I. (2017). Effect of different stablizers on quality characteristics of the set-type yogurt. African Journal Of Biotechnology, 16(46), 2142-2151. https://doi.org/10.5897/ajb2017.16197

⁷Nguyen, P. T, M., Kravchuk, O., Bhandari, B., & Prakash, S. (2017). Effect of different hydrocolloids on texture, rheology, tribology and sensory perception of texture and mouthfeel of low-fat pot-set yoghurt. Food Hydrocolloids, 72, 90-104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2017.05.035

⁸Rani, R., Unnikrishnan, V., Dharaiya, C. N., & Singh, B. (2012). Factors Affecting Syneresis in Yoghurt: A Review. Indian Journal of Dairy and Biosciences, 23.

⁹Saleh, A., Mohamed, A., Alamri, M., Hussain, S., Qasem, A., & Ibraheem, M. (2020). Effect of Different Starches on the Rheological, Sensory and Storage Attributes of Non-fat Set Yogurt. Foods, 9(1), 61. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9010061

¹⁰Sameen, A., Khan, M., Sattar, M., Javid, A., & Ayub, A. (2016). Quality evaluation of yoghurt stabilized with sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) and taro (Colocassia esculenta) starch. International Journal Of Food And Allied Sciences, 2(1), 23. https://doi.org/10.21620/ijfaas.2016123-29

¹¹Sebayang, F., & Bulan, R., & Wahyuni, W. (2019). The Utilization of Carboxymethyl Cellulose (CMC) from Ground (Arachis Hypogae L) Cellulose as Stabilizer for Cow Milk Yogurt. Journal of Chemical Natural Resources, 1(02), 38-51.

¹²Temesgen, M., & Yetneberk, S. (2015). Effect of Application of Stabilizers on Gelation and Syneresis in Yoghurt. Food Science and Quality Management, 37, 90-102.

¹³Vareltzis, P., Adamopoulos, K., Stavrakakis, E., Stefanakis, A., & Goula, A. (2015). Approaches to minimise yoghurt syneresis in simulated tzatziki sauce preparation. International Journal Of Dairy Technology, 69(2), 191-199. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-0307.12238