|
|
|
August 4, 2005
Dairy delight
Milk helps in building the body tissues —- the bones, teeth, skin and muscles. Have it warm at night and it will put you to sleep — have it cold and it will soothe the most vicious ulcers in your stomach, writes Mahnaz Rehman
So what’s so special about milk? Well, it’s the complete nutritional formula that nature has provided in its purest form. Its range of nutrients cater equally to all, from the growing needs of a three month old baby to the specific requirements of an 80-year-old man.Milk is equally beneficial for sick or convalescing people, sportsmen, labourers, housewives and sedentary workers. It helps in building body tissues– bones, teeth, skin and muscles. Have it warm at night and it will put you to sleep — have it cold and it will soothe the most vicious ulcers in your stomach. Regular intake of milk helps prevent osteoporosis.
The daily nutritional requirement of milk differ from person to person –– at least eight ounces per day for children, to more than eight ounces for the physically active, and at least four ounces for older people.
Milk should be consumed every day in its various forms, like cheese, yoghurt, butter and so on ––- though each form differs in terms of nutritive value. It should also be fresh, free from disease-causing germs and bacteria, and additives, preservatives or impurities.
If you purchase unpasteurized milk from a milkman, boil it for at least two minutes so that any germs or bacteria that may have evolved during its transportation and storage process, may be killed. Unfortunately, boiling may not completely kill germs that have high resistance to heat (particularly those of tuberculosis). Also, boiling may affect the nutritive contents of milk by destroying some vitamins that cannot stand high heat for very long.
A better alternative is to buy pasteurized milk, which should be refrigerated and consumed as soon as possible. Fortunately, today people have access to UHT treated milk (Ultra Heat Temperature), where milk is heated at 130-150 degrees Celsius for a few minutes, then chilled and later packed in pre-sterilized containers.
So is there enough milk available to meet the daily requirements of over 150 million Pakistanis? Pakistan is fortunate to be the fifth-largest milk producing country in the world, with a production that reached 32.9 million tons in 2004. But it is still far below the national production potential.
The main source of milk is livestock animals — buffaloes, cows, camels and goats. Nature has gifted Pakistan with high yielding breeds of buffalo, such as Nili-Ravi and Kunndi, which can be rightly called “black gold”. They have the potential of giving over 5,000 litres of milk per lactation period — given efficient breeding, feeding and healthcare systems.
Camel is another important milk source for desert dwellers. In the harsh desert environment, its average yield varies from nine to sixteen litres per day, while under normal pastoral conditions it gives 20-40 litres.
Milk reaches the market from two sources. The first source is the owner of the animals, who due to various problems, such as transportation, distance to cities, failure to get a fair price, the middleman factor and above all, a short life span of dairy products, either consumes milk within his/her home or sells it in the vicinity of the village.
The second source is that of the gawala/dodhy, who purchases milk from villages and (after mixing some water) takes it to the urban and sub-urban areas on bullock carts, horse-driven carriages, cycles and motor-cycles. He sells this milk to middlemen, shopkeepers or supplies it at your doorstep. Shopkeepers either sell this milk or turn it into yoghurt, butter, lassi, khoya, sweets and so on.
Packaged milk processing plants have had to face their own challenges, since the first plant was started in the 1960s. A lack of high yielding milch animals, inadequate feed, fodder and healthcare facilities, shortage of raw milk, high processing costs and other factors have affected their very survival.
It’s time to know how to take care of yourself properly.
|
|
|
|
