Technological and Health Effects of Butter By-products Rich in Phospholipids in Consumers’ Sustainable Diets

The food sector has an important role in the protection and sustainability of natural resources. Studies on high biological value components that emerge during butter churning have increased scientific interest in buttermilk and buttermilk-based functional products in recent years. Buttermilk contains all the water-soluble components of the cream, such as lactose, milk protein, minerals and bioactive peptides, as well as the therapeutic milk fat globule membrane (MFGM), which breaks down during churning and passes into the whey fraction. Scientific and medical studies in recent years have explained the properties of buttermilk, such as improving the digestive and immune system, anticarcinogenic activity, reducing serum cholesterol, nutraceutical and prebiotic effects. With these properties, buttermilk is widely used in the dairy industry, in the formulation of ice cream, yoghurt, recombined milk and especially low-fat cheeses.