Fat content of cow's milk: how many percent on average and what it depends on, the norm

The fat content of milk is a variable value. It depends on many factors. The fat content of milk can be determined using special methods. Consider ways to determine the fat content of cow's milk, types of fat content, factors that affect how much fat it will contain, whether it is possible to increase the percentage of fat content in cows at home.

Relative and total body fat

Cow's milk is 88% water. The rest is dry matter, a mixture of useful substances that are in an easily digestible form. The dry residue also contains animal fat.The average fat content of whole milk for cows is 3.2%. This figure means that 100 ml of liquid contains 3.2 ml of fat. The relative indicator is the fat content in 1 kg of milk (as a percentage).

Fat content correlates with the amount of milk a cow gives. Usually fat milk in those animals that cannot boast of large milk yields. Conversely, if a cow gives a lot of milk, it does not differ in special fat content. This pattern is typical for cattle of any direction - both dairy and meat.

The total fat content of natural milk is the ratio of fat to the total milk produced per lactation. As a rule, it does not coincide with the relative one, since the fat content changes during lactation.

At a rate of 3.2%, milk is suitable for normal consumption, for dietary it is defatted. Baked milk is characterized by a reduced amount of water, so its fat content thus increases. Fresh milk has the maximum value.After a few hours, the fats in it begin to turn into other substances. The fat content depends on where the animals live - rural cows give a thicker product than those bred on farms.

By breeds, the percentage of fat content may also differ. The fattest milk in Jersey cows is an average of 4.5-6%, the maximum is as much as 8%. The milk yield of the breed is small (3 thousand liters per year), but thoroughbred animals are used to improve the characteristics of other breeds. Holstein cows have a maximum milk yield of 12 thousand liters per year, but the milk is not fat.

Types of fat content

The dairy product is divided into types, taking into account the percentage of fat content:

• 0-1% - low fat, designed to feed people on a diet;
• 1-2% - for catering and dairy production;
• 3.5% - normal fat content of fresh milk;
• 4.5-6% - only some breeds give such milk,
• 10% - an indicator typical for cream.

Fat content is a criterion that can tell the breeder which breed to choose for home growing. If it is planned to keep cows to obtain milk for fresh sale, then you can take a dairy individual with low-fat milk. If the product is intended to produce dairy products from it - cottage cheese, cheeses, then you need to take a cow with full-fat milk. Fat also affects the taste of milk. So, something that has at least 3.2-3.8% is considered tasty.

Factors affecting the percentage of fat in cow's milk

There are several of these factors. These are the genetic potential of the animal, the feeding ration, the age and the period of the season. Each of them affects the fat content, reducing or increasing it.

Genetic level

In some dairy breeds, selection was and is being carried out on such a basis as the fat content of milk. The best representatives are chosen for breeding, their offspring inherit the desired traits. However, even among purebred cows, phenotypic deviations from the standard are possible.

Belonging to the breed to some extent guarantees a certain percentage of fat content, since this characteristic is inherited in cows.

Forage base

The potential inherent in a cow by nature and breeders, she can show only with proper feeding. If the animal is underfed or lacks essential minerals, fat content will be affected.

The food a cow eats at home also matters. Fat in the body of ruminants is formed from acetic acid, the source of which is fiber extracted by animals from grass, hay, silage.If there is not enough roughage in the diet of cattle, the production of acetic acid is reduced, the fat content is reduced. The minimum fiber content in the diet of dairy cows should be 16-18%. Hay in the diet should be at least 50%, grain - no more than 15% (if you exceed the norm, lactic acidosis may develop).

Compliance with the optimal ratio of sugars and protein (1 to 1), sugars and starch (1.5: 1) in the diet of cattle improves the conditions for the rumen microflora, this enhances fat synthesis. The optimal level of starch in the diet of dairy cows is no more than 28%. If carbohydrates in the diet are less than 20% or more than 40%, fat content may decrease by 1%.

Finely ground feeds reduce the amount of fat, because due to the small size of the particles they are quickly removed from the proventriculus. Therefore, you need to cut root vegetables and vegetables into small pieces so that the cow can swallow them. To increase the fat content, cattle are fed with mixed fodder and crushed corn. You can add some sugar to the corn mash.Boiled potatoes are added to the feed (not raw, there is a lot of starch in it), beets and carrots in small portions. All vegetables must be ground free.

Age features

How much fat the milk contains depends on the age of the cattle. Practical studies show that fat content, like milk yield, grows up to 5 calving, and becomes maximum in the next lactation. In older cows, these characteristics naturally decrease. In first-calf heifers, it is lower than in multiple-parous cows, which is also considered normal.

Season

Fat content is lower in summer than in winter. It depends on feeding with succulent feed in the warm season and on drinking a large amount of water. Fluid ingested makes milk thinner.

Methods for determining fat content

For an accurate measurement, there is a device - a lactometer, but at home, the value can be determined with acceptable accuracy. It is necessary to pour fresh milk into a glass 10 cm high. Leave it for 8 hours. During this time, the cream will rise to the surface. You need to measure this layer, the value is in millimeters and will correspond to the percentage of fat.

Why might fat content drop?

For many reasons. Due to the low content of fibre, protein and sulfur in feed, insufficient intake of roughage, increased carbohydrates and vegetable fats (for example, oilcake). Due to insufficient amount of energy produced by the cow at the beginning of lactation. Fat content drops as much as possible in the middle of the feeding period and grows towards its end. It can also fall due to disorders in the digestive tract - rumen acidosis.

Is it possible to increase?

If there is an opportunity to graze cows in the pasture, you need to use it. Movement, sunshine, fresh air and a large selection of herbs are beneficial to the he alth of cows and produce better quality products than those kept in stalls.

Change in nutrition can influence the quality characteristics of milk. The cow is given more greens, coarse and succulent fodder, in winter - good hay, silage, grass flour, straw, root crops. Hay should be fed evenly throughout the day.

The animal is fed with mash potatoes and vegetables. You have to be careful with grain additives. Grains increase the energy value of the diet, but may reduce the duration of lactation. It is important to milk a cow properly. The first streams, in which there is almost no fat, are recommended to be drained into a separate bowl and not mixed with the main milk. It is also necessary to carefully milk out all the milk from the udder, its last portions are the fattest.

The fat content of cow's milk is one of its most important characteristics and a determining criterion for taste properties. It depends on many factors, which the livestock breeder himself can influence by proper feeding and caring for the animal. Milk with optimal fat content is not only tasty and he althy, but is an excellent raw material for the production of cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt and other dairy products.

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