Feeding strategies to design the fatty acid profile of sheep milk and cheese

The majority of sheep milk produced in the world is transformed into cheese. Feeding is a major factor affecting the quality of sheep milk and, therefore, of sheep cheese. Because fat is the main compound of cheese, this review gives an update on the effects of feeding and nutrition on milk fat content and deeply discusses feeding strategies aimed at increasing the levels of healthy fatty acids (FA), such as conjugated linoleic acid and omega-3 FA, in milk and cheese in the human diet. In addition, the use of alternative feed resources such as by-products, aromatic plants, and phenolic compounds in the sheep diet and their effects on milk and cheese FA composition are also discussed. Among feeding strategies, grazing and the use of supplements rich in oils seem to be the best and the cheapest strategies to improve the nutritional value of the fatty acid profile in sheep cheese.

全球生产的绝大多数绵羊乳均被加工为干酪。饲喂管理是影响绵羊乳品质、进而直接影响绵羊干酪品质的关键因素。鉴于脂肪是干酪的核心组成成分，本综述首先梳理了饲喂与营养对绵羊乳脂肪含量的最新研究进展，并深入探讨了旨在提升乳及干酪中有益于人体健康的脂肪酸（fatty acids, FA）——如共轭亚油酸（conjugated linoleic acid）与Omega-3脂肪酸——含量的饲喂策略。此外，本综述还讨论了在绵羊日粮中使用副产物、芳香植物与酚类化合物等替代饲料资源的方式，及其对乳及干酪脂肪酸组成的影响。在各类饲喂策略中，放牧模式与添加富含油脂的补饲剂，似乎是提升绵羊干酪脂肪酸组成营养价值的最优且最经济的方案。