Butter

About Butter

About butter

Butter is a dairy product made from fat and protein

components of churned cream.
Butter must have a minimum fat content of 80%, a max of 18%
moisture content and fat solid at 2%.
Sources of butter
It is made from churning fresh or
fermented cream to separate the
butterfat from buttermilk. Most
frequently made from cows’
milk, butter can also be made
from the milk of other mammals
like sheep, goats, buffalo, and
yaks.
 Identification In Chemistry
Chemically, butter fat consists essentially of a
mixture of triglycerides, particularly those
derived from fatty acids, such as palmitic, oleic,
myristic and stearic acids.
Stearic acid:— Its chemical
formula is C17 H35CO2 H.
It is a waxy solid. The salts and
esters of stearic acid are called
stearates.

Oleic acid:— It is an odorless,

colourless oil. In chemical
terms, oleic acid is classified as
monounsaturated omega-9 fatty
acid.
Palmitic acid:—The most
common saturated fatty acid
found in the human body and
can be provided in the diet or
synthesized endogenously from
other fatty acids, carbohydrates
and amino acids.
 Adulteration in butter
Adulteration in butter is a serious problem due to
economic advantages taken by replacing expensive milk fat
with cheaper oil without informing the customers.
The authentication of milkfat methods include analysis of
bulk components, especially triacylglycerols, fatty acids,
sterols and tocopherols.
Following are the harmful effects of major adulterants
added to butter:—

1. Artificial dye
The presence of dyes In butter might result in
in making the butter toxic for our health.
To test the presence of artificial dye in butter,

heat 1ml of fat with a mixture of 1ml of conc.

sulphuric acid and 4ml of acetic acid.
Appearance of pink/red colour indicates
presence of dye In butter

2. Starch
Starch is often mixed in butter to increase its fat/
carbohydrate content.
To test the presence of starch in butter, add
½ teaspoon of butter and 2-3 drops of iodine
solution. If it is adulterated, the butter will change
its colour to blue.
 OBSERVATION TABLE
Food Adulterant Test Observation Inference

Starch In a 1/2 Butter Butter is

teaspoon of turns
butter, add adulterated.
blue
2-3 drops in colour.
of iodine sol.

Artificial dye Heat 1ml Pink/red Artificial

Butter of fat with a colour
dye is
mixture of present in
appears. butter.
conc. H 2 SO 4
and 4ml of
acetic acid.

Adulterants found in butter —

Starch and artificial dye.
Chemicals Used—
Iodine sol., conc. H2SO4, acetic acid.