Goat milk cheese: good for health and the environment
One of the pillars of modern healthy eating is based on the discovery that consuming the foods our ancestors ate is the best way to protect ourselves from cancer, aging, obesity, and cardiovascular diseases.
Among the varieties of milk, goat milk was the first to be consumed by humans in many civilizations around the Mediterranean basin and was the main nourishment for children and infants. Today we know that, in terms of chemical composition, goat milk is the closest to breast milk, although over time it has been supplanted by cow's milk.
Among the varieties of milk, goat milk was the first to be consumed by humans in many civilizations around the Mediterranean basin and was the main nourishment for children and infants. Today we know that, in terms of chemical composition, goat milk is the closest to breast milk, although over time it has been supplanted by cow's milk.
But what are the differences between goat milk and cow's milk?
Let's say that in an ideal competition between the two, goat milk definitely comes out as the winner: it is more digestible, less allergenic, and also less harmful to the environment.Indeed, goat milk has a different composition in caseins, that is, the milk proteins that are difficult to digest and cause intolerances, compared to cow's milk.
Fresh goat cheese is also produced without the addition of rennet: the raw milk coagulates spontaneously and, for this reason, all the vitamins and lactic ferments remain unchanged!
Depending on the type of diet of the animal, goat milk can have a high content of linoleic acid which, according to a series of recent studies, exerts a powerful antitumor and anti-inflammatory action.
Is goat cheese fattier than cow cheese?
No, in fact it is not; rather, it is a bit less fatty than cow cheese also due to the way it is produced, because the fat particles in goat milk are smaller and remain in the whey: for this reason, ricotta, which has more whey, is a bit fattier than aged cheese.
And lactose?
Lactose is a sugar naturally present in goat milk as well, and therefore it is not recommended for those who are lactose intolerant. However, as described earlier, in goat cheese produced through the fermentation of bacteria, lactose is transformed into lactic acid, making it more digestible.
Goat cheese and milk? The environment thanks you
Goat milk appears to be more sustainable for the environment compared to cow's milk: goats take up less space, use fewer resources, and require less medical treatment than cattle in the production of their milk. Furthermore, dairies that produce goat milk rarely rely on hormone treatments to increase milk production.
Dr. Anna Cosentino - nutrition biologist
