2025 May Board Book

Fruity Milks – Work continues at CalPoly San Luis Obispo to test the shelf-life and optimize the formulations of milk and fruit purees/concentrates. Product testing was conducted Chapman to test the formulation for UHT applications. Concepts were presented to industry, with additional presentations scheduled Summe 2025. Fiber Milks – Prototypes were presented to industry. CDIC staff is working with CalPoly SLO to develop and refine the concepts Summer 2025. Milk and Coffee – Retort Study CDIC contracted with Chapman University for a 2-year study to measure the effect of HTST, UHT and retort processing on the quality and stability of RTD coffee beverages containing milk, lactose-free milk and high protein milks. The goal of the project is to evaluate the differences in physio-chemical properties, sensory attributes, flavor and aroma compounds in RTD coffee using different types of heat processing. RTD coffee with milk has become increasingly popular in the US, with the size of the RTD coffee market estimated at $5.6 billion in 2024, and expected to reach $30 billion by 2028. Retort is one of the most cost-effective and more common methods for sterilizing coffee in cans or bottles. Retort exposes the product to higher temperatures for much longer than the hot fill process, and that can have adverse effects on flavor over time. The research will assist brands and processors that rely on retort to optimize their formulation and brew processes to compensate for these effects which can impact consumer preferences and acceptability. The novel research will test regular milk, lactose-free and high protein milks in coffee beverages.

Cost effective, the retort process lends itself to small batches and allows for the introduction of novel and seasonal products for agile processors and entrepreneurs.

Extruded Snacks for Pets with Real, “upcycled” cheese. Phase II

The project at CalPoly Pomona successfully tested the feasibility of including real cheese (25-35%), as the primary ingredient in extruded pet snacks. Additional optimization work is planned in Q3, utilizing whey permeate to improve cohesion and texture. CDIC staff worked with CalPoly Pomona to prepare a proposal for funding.

Lactose Free Cooking Cheeses – The projects were conducted at CalPoly, presented to industry at the hell Beach conference. Report being finalized.