2. Physico-chemical aspects
Goat and sheep milk is white in colour compared
with cow milk, which is yellowish because of the
presence of carotene (Saini and Gill, 1991). Goat
milk has a stronger flavour than sheep milk. This
might be due to the liberation of short-chain fatty
acids during rough handling, which give off a goaty
smell (Babayan, 1981; Haenlein, 1993). Unlike cow
milk, which is slightly acidic, goat milk is alkaline in
nature, which is very useful for people with acidity
problems. This alkalinity is due to the higher protein
content and a different arrangement of phosphates
(Saini and Gill, 1991).
The components of goat, sheep, human and cow
milk are given in Table 1. The gross composition of