Industrial application of the Creamatocrit method to estimate the total contents of lipids in natura cow milk

A simple microcentrifugation-based method is proposed as an alternative to the Gerber test to check the total contents of lipids in raw milk, with advantages for industrial application. The method consists of the filling of capillary tubes with the sample of the milk to be analysed and centrifugated for 5 min at 15000 rpm. After centrifugation, the fat percentage is obtained by calculating the ratio of the lengths of the creamy phase to total phase. The value of percentage found is then corrected by the equation of the method that predicts values of Gerber with 95% confidence limits. Its industrial application has been assessed through comparative tests carried out with samples obtained at the milk reception of a dairy plant. The values obtained with the Creamatocrit for samples of in natura cow milk were compared to the standard Gerber test and the Laktotest, a test equipment recently adopted by the dairy plant. The analyses accomplished by the Gerber test, the Laktotest and the Creamatocrit method presented 0% rejection of in natura milk. The average errors in the value of fat percentage, obtained in relation to the Gerber test, was 3.8% for the micro centrifugation method and 2.3% for the Laktotest. The results obtained were encouraging, providing strong evidence for the industrial application of the method proposed.