Current goat milk production, characteristics, and utilization in Indonesia
Juni Sumarmono
Abstract
Abstract In Indonesia and some southeast Asian countries, the number of goats raised for milk production is growing. In these countries, goat milk is the second most produced and consumed milk after cow milk. In Indonesia, dairy goats’ development is promising, but the farming of dairy goats and marketing milk products is still scattered and unstructured. The milk is produced from varieties of goat breeds, including Peranakan Etawa, Saanen, Nubian, and their crosses. Goat milk has unique and distinct characteristics and is an excellent source of nutrients for humans. Compared to cow milk, it has smaller fat globules, more homogenous, shorter rennet coagulation time, and softer curd. Goat milk utilization includes fluid milk for direct consumption; frozen fresh milk; dried or powdered milk; fermented milk products such as yogurt, kefir, including its derivatives such as cosmetics, concentrated yogurt, yogurt cheese, ice cream, shakes; cheeses such as fresh cottage-type cheese, acid-coagulated cheese and mozzarella; and also, other traditional products such as sweets & candies and caramels. The development of dairy goats and goat milk consumption is driven by several factors, including the low cost for start-up and production, consumers’ demand, alleged health properties of goat milk, and varieties of products.