According to Hari Meletharayil, vice president of product research at Dairy Management Inc. (DMI), the commercial value of whey has grown to the point where it may influence investment decisions in cheese manufacturing.
“Over the years, whey protein was a co-product per se,” Meletharayil told NutraIngredients.
He suggested that revenue from whey could increasingly help justify capital investment in new dairy processing facilities, illustrating how ingredients once considered secondary outputs can become important commercial drivers.
Searching for the next high-value ingredient
The question now is whether other components of dairy processing streams can follow a similar path.
Meletharayil identified lactoferrin, whey protein phospholipid concentrates and protein hydrolysates as research areas with potential applications beyond traditional dairy nutrition.
Lactoferrin, already used in infant formula and investigated for its immune-related properties, offers one example. However, its heat sensitivity continues to challenge manufacturers looking to incorporate it into a wider range of products.
Meletharayil suggested that advances in processing technology could help overcome this limitation, potentially opening additional markets for the ingredient.
Whey protein phospholipid concentrates are also attracting research interest, particularly for cognitive health.
While these ingredients have applications in infant nutrition, their potential relevance to aging populations remains under investigation.
DMI is also funding research into whether choline from whey protein phospholipid concentrates could support women’s health.
Could dairy peptides tap into GLP-1 demand?
Another area of interest is protein hydrolysates, particularly amid growing attention to glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and its role in appetite regulation.
“So GLP-1 is a big, big craze,” Meletharayil said. “But what happens if we can produce GLP-1 internally by consuming some certain foods?”
The possibility of using food-derived peptides to stimulate endogenous GLP-1 production presents an intriguing research direction, although evidence of meaningful metabolic benefits remains to be established.
Watch the full video interview for Meletharayil’s perspective on the research and processing innovations that could shape the next generation of dairy ingredients.
