Improving technological and functional properties of milk by high-pressure processing

High-pressure processing has become an established technology for treating meat, fruit and fruit juices, shellfish and ready meals over the last 15 years. In the same period, the changes in milk constituents have been studied in detail, and found to be often unique: for example, changes in casein micelle properties and denaturation of whey protein affect the gel assembly process in cheese and yoghurt. Today, the understanding of the effects of high pressure on milk is quite advanced, and is reviewed in this chapter, along with current and possible commercial implications of these changes.