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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Dairy and Functional Foods Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #378260
Research Project: Improving the Sustainability and Quality of Food and Dairy Products from Manufacturing to Consumption via Process Modeling and Edible Packaging

Location: Dairy and Functional Foods Research

Title: Improvement of physicochemical properties of reduced-cholesterol butter by the addition of beta-sitosteryl oleate

Author
item NGUYEN, ANH THI LAN - Delaware State University
item BOAKYE, PRINCE - Delaware State University
item BESONG, SAMUEL - Delaware State University
item Tomasula, Peggy
item LUMOR, STEPHEN - Delaware State University

Submitted to: Journal of Food Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/8/2020
Publication Date: 1/14/2021
Citation: Nguyen, A., Boakye, P.G., Besong, S.S., Tomasula, M.M., Lumor, S.E. 2021. Improvement of physicochemical properties of reduced-cholesterol butter by the addition of beta-sitosteryl oleate. Journal of Food Science. 86(2):404-410. https://doi.org/10.1111/1750-3841.15573.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1750-3841.15573

Interpretive Summary: Even though dietary cholesterol does not appear to lead to an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease, many consumers are still advised by their physicians to limit their daily intake of cholesterol. Previous attempts to make products for this market such as reduced-cholesterol (RC) butter spreads or stick butter did not have the same consistency as the full cholesterol products. In this study, a plant sterol was modified and incorporated in an RC butter. This butter was comparable to regular butter with respect to quality and taste and could be made into sticks. In addition to RC butter, this method could provide the foundation for products blending butter and oils to create low-cholesterol, reduced saturated-fat products, possibly in stick form.

Technical Abstract: Beta cyclodextrin (beta-CD) has been shown to successfully lower the cholesterol content of dairy products such as butter but the process tends to negatively impact overall quality and consistency. In this study, beta-sitosterol, which is similar in structure to cholesterol, was reacted with oleic acid to form beta-sitosteryl oleate (BSO), and this was used to improve the consistency of reduced-cholesterol butter. The reaction was catalyzed by sodium bisulfate (2%, w/w) at 140C, and the highest degree of esterification (94.3%) was obtained after 9 h of reaction using a beta-sitosterol-oleic acid molar ratio of 1:5. Ultra-pasteurized cream was then treated with 15% (w/v) beta-CD at 40C with stirring (100 rpm), for 30 min. Results indicated a 95.4% reduction in cholesterol content. Finally, the reduced-cholesterol cream was constituted to contain 3, 5 and 10% (w/w) BSO, after which fat was extracted from the three formulations and their melting profiles compared to that of milk fat. The cream containing 3% BSO showed a profile similar to milk fat and was therefore used to formulate BSO-incorporated reduced-cholesterol butter (BSOB). Instrumental analyses showed that BSOB was comparable to the control butter with respect to physical properties such as hardness/firmness and adhesiveness. Additionally, sensory evaluation indicated no significant differences between the butter samples with respect to spreadability and flavor.