The Origin of Oxidized Flavors and Factors Responsible for their Development in Milk and Milk Products

The objectionable flavors which develop in milk and milk products such as chalky, tallowy, metallic and fishy, often are referred to as oxidized flavors. Few attempts have been made, however, to trace their origin. It has been known for some time that ascorbic acid plays an important part in reactions which produce the oxidized flavors (2, Studies of the stability of fat in cream and butter, as determined by the re-emulsification test, also have indicated that with passage of time the fat itself may undergo deterioration in the presence of aseorbie acid, resulting in the development of oxidized flavors and losses in the fat-soluble vitamins (5, 8). It has been pointed out, that the sensitization of fat to this type of deterioration may take place within the limits of time during which neither organoleptic nor chemical changes can be accurately determined in the fat-containing food products (5).