Composition and enrichment of caprine milk oligosaccharides from New Zealand Saanen goat cheese whey

Goat milk contains oligosaccharides that are structurally similar to human milk, which suggests that caprine milk oligosaccharides (CMO) could mimic the beneficial physiological effects described for human milk oligosaccharides for infant health. This study aimed to characterise the nutrient composition of New Zealand Saanen goat colostrum, regular milk and whey samples and to develop an easily scalable approach to produce an enriched CMO product for use in in vivo experimentation. Goat milk whey was processed by a combination of ultrafiltration, enzymatic hydrolysis of the lactose, solid-phase extraction and rotary vacuum evaporation. An 80% recovery of the oligosaccharide fraction with an enrichment of 24-fold was obtained when compared to the starting whey. Lactose was reduced to 2.5% of its initial concentration by enzymatic treatment. From 8 batches (approximately 1200 mL per batch) of whey, 19 g of product were generated of which around 8% were oligosaccharides, 44% monosaccharides, 44% lactose and 4% galacto-oligosaccharides.