This technology is a method for producing infant formula that controls the drying gas temperature, flow rate, and feed injection speed within specific ranges during the spray drying stage—the process where glycation products increase the most—among the standard steps of raw material mixing, sterilization, concentration, and spray drying. It also includes a method for inhibiting the formation of glycation products in infant formula by applying these same conditions.
Infant formula must undergo heat treatments such as sterilization, concentration, and drying to ensure microbial safety and shelf life. During these processes, the Maillard reaction between sugars and proteins occurs, leading to the formation of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs). AGEs are involved in the production of reactive oxygen species and intracellular inflammatory responses, raising concerns that infants, whose immune systems and metabolism are still developing, are more vulnerable to these risks.
This technology reduces the thermal damage to the formula during spray drying by optimizing the injection conditions of both the drying gas and the feed, thereby lowering the formation of major glycation products such as N-carboxymethyl-lysine, N-carboxyethyl-lysine, and hydroxymethylfurfural. It is implemented solely by adjusting the operating conditions of existing processes without the need for additional additives. It can be applied to the production of infant formula, powdered dairy products, and spray-dried processed foods, allowing for the creation of safer formula with reduced glycation products without requiring new equipment.
This invention was developed with support from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs for the development of quality control technology through the control of glycation product formation during the infant formula production stage.
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