Physicochemical Characteristics of Commercially Available Greek Yoghurts
Eleni C. Pappa,
Efthymia Kondyli,
Athanasios C. Pappas,
Panagiota Kyriakaki,
Evangelos Zoidis,
Lida Papalamprou,
Agori Karageorgou,
Panagiotis Simitzis,
Michael Goliomytis,
Eleni Tsiplakou,
Constantinos A. Georgiou
Affiliations
Eleni C. Pappa
Dairy Research Department, Institute of Technology of Agricultural Products, Hellenic Agricultural Organization-DIMITRA, Ethnikis Antistaseos 3, Katsikas, 45221 Ioannina, Greece
Efthymia Kondyli
Dairy Research Department, Institute of Technology of Agricultural Products, Hellenic Agricultural Organization-DIMITRA, Ethnikis Antistaseos 3, Katsikas, 45221 Ioannina, Greece
Athanasios C. Pappas
Laboratory of Nutritional Physiology and Feeding, Faculty of Animal Science, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
Panagiota Kyriakaki
Laboratory of Nutritional Physiology and Feeding, Faculty of Animal Science, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
Evangelos Zoidis
Laboratory of Nutritional Physiology and Feeding, Faculty of Animal Science, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
Lida Papalamprou
Chemistry Laboratory, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
Agori Karageorgou
Laboratory of Animal Breeding and Husbandry, Department of Animal Science, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
Panagiotis Simitzis
Laboratory of Animal Breeding and Husbandry, Department of Animal Science, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
Michael Goliomytis
Laboratory of Animal Breeding and Husbandry, Department of Animal Science, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
Eleni Tsiplakou
Laboratory of Nutritional Physiology and Feeding, Faculty of Animal Science, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
Constantinos A. Georgiou
Chemistry Laboratory, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Agricultural University of Athens, 75 Iera Odos, 11855 Athens, Greece
In the present study, the physicochemical characteristics of 108 yoghurts purchased from the Greek market have been assessed. Generally, the range of the mean pH values of samples was 3.58–4.64, of fat 0–10.8%, of protein 3.29–10.05%, of total solids 10.75–25.18%, and of ash 0.5–1.17%. Samples were categorized as strained and non-strained (traditional with a crust or plain without a crust). The milk origin was classified as being from sheep, goats, cows, mixture of sheep–goat–cow milk, or cow–donkey milk combination. A significant effect of species origin was determined for yoghurt physicochemical attributes, whereas geographical origin, mainland or island, affected yoghurt acidity only. Discriminant analysis revealed MDA, pH, acidity, syneresis, fat, and protein content and color lightness and redness as the traits responsible for the discrimination of yoghurts into milk-type classes, whereas fat, protein, and ash content, pH, and syneresis attributes were responsible for the discrimination into fat content classes. Yoghurt samples were sufficiently clustered according to their fat content, whereas protein content and species origin discriminated yoghurts to a lesser extent. This first in-depth descriptive research on a wide range of samples of the renowned Greek yoghurt showed that several physicochemical characteristics can be used for sample discrimination.
