Mediterranean milk and milk products

Milk and dairy products are part of a healthy Mediterranean diet which, besides cow’s milk, also consists of sheep’s, goat’s and buffalo’s milk—alone or as a mixture—as raw material. The fat and protein composition of the milk of the various animal species differs only slightly, but in every case it has a high priority in human nutrition. The milk proteins are characterized by a high content of essential amino acids. Beyond that macromolecules,which have various biological functions, are available or may be formed by proteolysis in milk. Taking this into consideration, the technology of different well-known Italian and German cheese types is presented and the differences as well as correspondences regarding nutrition are discussed.