Farm Women United
A Citizen's Platform of the people, by the people, for the people.
Milk Protein Concentrate
Brief History of Milk Protein Concentrate (MPC and Ultra-filtered Milk)
Following the 1994 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), Milk Protein Concentrate (MPC) imports increased dramatically because they were not subject to tariff rate quotas since they were imported for industrial purposes such as glue and adhesives. Several dairy co-ops, including Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), began importing MPC which they used in dairy product manufacturing. Kraft boldly used MPC in Velveeta and Kraft Singles without GRAS status.
Domestic Production of Ultra-filtered Milk began in the 1990’s.
April 17, 1997, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released its proposed rule on substances Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS), which allowed a manufacturer to “market a substance that the manufacturer determines is GRAS without informing the agency (FDA), or if the agency is so informed, while the agency is reviewing that information.”
February 10, 2000, National Cheese Institute (NCI) filed a “Citizens Petition” to allow Ultra-Filtered Milk to be used in standardized cheese and simply be labeled as milk or non-fat milk. FDA did not act in favor of this petition. Several other petitions and requests for GRAS have been filed since then.
Domestic production of MPC began in the early 2000’s.
March 6, 2001, General Accounting Office (GAO) released a report on Ultra-filtered Milk. The report cites MPC imports increased from 805 metric tons in 1990 to 44,878 metric tons in 1999. MPC was blamed for declining farm milk prices. FDA was also cited for “withholding enforcement.” FDA objected to this wording and it was replaced with “exercising enforcement discretion.”
December 18, 2002, FDA sent a warning letter to Kraft Foods North America Inc., charging them with violations of the Code of Federal Regulations for Standardized Cheese. Kraft changed the label from “Pasteurized Processed Cheese Food” to “Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product” and continued to use MPC.
April 12, 2005, USDA published Proposed Rules to change the definition for Class I milk.
On January 1, 2011, new rules went into effect for “fluid milk product”, which applies to any milk product, fluid or frozen, containing 6.5% or more of non-fat milk solids or 2.25% or more of true milk protein. The rule also determines how milk-derived ingredients will be priced under all Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMO) when they are used in products meeting the definition.
February 19, 2016, Leprino Foods sent a notice of GRAS to FDA for two MPC products.
September 20, 2017, Tamarack Biotics announced self-affirmed GRAS status for TruActive MPC 85.
August 11, 2017, FDA announced “enforcement discretion” for Ultra-filtered Milk in Standardized Cheeses and further stated “we do not intend to take action against companies that manufacture standardized cheeses and related cheese products that contain fluid ultra-filtered milk or fluid ultra-filtered non-fat milk without declaring them in the ingredient statement, as long as their labels declare milk or non-fat milk in the ingredient statement.”
Even though statistics are readily available for U.S. production of milk, butter, cheese, non-fat dry milk, etc., the total volume of domestically produced MPC, Ultra-filtered Milk, and other milk protein products, is viewed as proprietary information and is not publicly available.
After more than 20 years of the use of Ultra-filtered Milk and MPC and numerous requests for GRAS status, FDA has not officially granted GRAS status to MPC or Ultra-filtered Milk. It seems that there must be a reason for this. Even so, politicians and dairy industry leaders are damning Canada for not taking our MPC or Ultra-filtered Milk and blaming them for our low milk prices.
Prepared by Gerald Carlin, Chairman of Policy Development, Farm Women United
4/29/18
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Milk Protein Concentrate Facts
What is Milk Protein Concentrate (MPC)?
MPC is Ultra-filtered skim milk that goes through a number of membranes and pipes. The protein molecules are the largest so they are retained. MPC can be in either a sludge form (ultra-filtered milk) or a dry powder (MPC).
What are the concerns with MPC?
The health concern with MPC lies in the process which may damage or alter milk proteins. It is unknown whether the human body can utilize the proteins after they have gone through the ultra-filtration process in the same way that the human body can utilize normal milk proteins. The “dairy industry” has taken milk, a natural product, and turned it into industrial components. The long term health effects are not known.
Who uses MPC?
MPC is used in the making of some forms of cheese. It takes 100 pounds or 11 2/3 gallons of milk to make 10 pounds of natural cheese. When cheesemakers add MPC and other additives to the cheese vat, they get a yield of 14 to 18 pounds of inferior cheese.
The “dairy industry” has figured out a way to extend cheese yields by making cheese that retains more water. This process creates a false surplus which results in lower farm milk prices paid to dairy farmers and greater profits for the non-farm sectors of the “dairy industry.”
The “industry” does not want the consumer or the farmer to know how much MPC is being used.
Where does MPC come from?
MPC is both imported and produced in the United States. No statistics are available on how much MPC is produced in this country since it falls under the same classification as other milk powders including the traditional non-fat dry milk. It is also unclear whether all users of MPC are listing it on the ingredient label.
How does MPC use relate to declining fluid milk sales?
Fluid milk consumption has declined for two main reasons: 1) the promotion of plant based drinks that are labeled as milk and are being falsely portrayed as being healthier. 2) The Federal Dietary Guidelines encourage the consumption of low-fat or skim milk which are less appetizing and this has led to the decline of fluid milk consumption. The “dairy industry” has gone along with the promotion of low-fat and skim milk because there is more profit in retaining the butterfat for other purposes, including, using it with MPC to make inferior cheese.
Cheese consumption has increased dramatically over the past 50 years. Will declining cheese quality reverse this trend and hurt dairy farmers even more?
Characteristics of cheese made with MPC
Cheese made with MPC tends to be rubbery, slimy, and does not melt or stretch like natural cheese.
What is the solution?
Search out cheese manufacturers who make cheese the traditional way without using MPC. There are many artisanal and small family farm cheese plants that still make cheese the traditional way. Also, enjoy drinking whole milk because studies have shown that there is no positive benefit from drinking skim or low-fat milk compared to whole milk.
Farm Women United
P.O. Box 113
Laceyville, PA 18623
(570) 267-7405
4/24/18
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Website Sources pertaining to
Milk Protein Concentrate
Flexport (Information that you cannot find on the USDA website.
FDA (Food and Drug Administration)
Food and Water Watch
MPC/Ultra-filtered Milk Impact “Supply” and Farm Price
Are the “milk glut” and low farm milk prices being caused by the use of Milk Protein Concentrate (MPC) and Ultra-filtered Milk (UF) in cheese and other dairy products? No one really knows how much milk MPC/Ultra-filtered Milk is displacing since the Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMO) do not collect data on MPC/UF Milk production and use. This is considered “proprietary information.” MPC/UF Milk are now being used in all four classes of milk products.
The issue of MPC use dates back to at least the mid-1990s. On April 17, 1997, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released its proposed rule on substances Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS), which allowed a manufacturer to “market a substance that the manufacturer determines is GRAS without informing the agency (FDA), or if the agency is so informed, while the agency is reviewing that information.” Although the FDA has approved various industry requests for MPC GRAS status in the past five years or so, the FDA has not independently, officially granted GRAS status to MPC. Why? Is it because the high-pressure filtration process has a negative effect on the fragile milk proteins? How does the human body utilize these denatured proteins? If milk proteins are derived from milk that has already been “ultra-pasteurized,” even more questions are raised.
MPC and UF Milk are not approved ingredients in standardized cheeses, but the FDA has “exercised discretionary enforcement” in this area, as reiterated on August 11, 2017. The FDA went further and stated, “. . . we do not intend to take action against companies that manufacture standardized cheeses and related cheese products that contain fluid Ultra-filtered Milk or fluid Ultra-filtered Non-fat Milk without declaring them in the ingredient statement, as long as their labels declare milk or non-fat milk in the ingredient statement.”
To answer the first question, we can look at cheese production compared to Class III utilization in the FMMOs to gain some insight. The traditional yield factor for cheese is 10.01 lbs. per 100 lbs. of fluid milk containing 3.5% butterfat and 2.99% true protein. Higher average components may yield 11 lbs. of cheese per 100 lbs. of milk. National cheese production last year (2018) for cheese falling under Class III was approximately 12.7 billion lbs. Class III utilization (weighted average) in all Federal Orders was 43%. If this rate of utilization is true nationally, the average cheese production would be 14.0 lbs. per 100 lbs. of milk. Given this information, it seems unlikely that the national average cheese yield is less than 13.5 lbs. per 100 lbs. of milk. This translates into at least 20 billion pounds of farm milk being displaced by the use of MPC/UF Milk in cheese.
Low-fat and non-fat dairy products are being promoted by dairy farmer checkoff dollars and through the Federal milk pricing formula which includes dairy product non-specific “make allowances” for butterfat, protein, and “other solids.” Declining fluid milk sales may be due in part to people not liking the taste of low-fat or non-fat milk. It is even getting harder to find full-fat yogurt and cottage cheese. The fat that traditionally would go into these products is used with MPC/UF Milk to produce substandard cheese. Much of this use violates cheese “standards.” How much milk is being displaced in other dairy products because of MPC/UF Milk and other “innovative” products and methods which are used to extend yields? No one really knows since this is “proprietary information.” More profit is pocketed by cheese manufacturers when MPC/UF Milk is used than when cheese is manufactured the traditional way. There is no doubt that MPC, UF, and other milk protein derivatives (many of which are imported) have been a tool of the milk processing industry for over 20 years to maintain an illusion of “oversupply,” enabling them to obtain farm milk at depressed prices while at the same time increasing milk manufacturing profits. The FDA, USDA, dairy industry “leaders,” and politicians have aggressively ignored this issue and hidden it from public knowledge. All this has contributed to the decimation of family dairy farms, rural communities, and local food.
Now the FDA is moving ahead to “modernize” “standards of identity” which may result in lab-produced milk alternatives being integrated into dairy products without the consumer’s knowledge, further exaggerating “over-supply” and compromising food quality. The anti-animal agriculture forces are very influential in this whole process.
This all points to the need for the dairy farmer’s “cost of production” to take first priority. Hearings and investigations must be held to get to the bottom of this dairy mess. Once the pricing, displacement, extension, product labeling, and food quality issues are dealt with, a sensible, farmer-funded “supply management” program could be implemented, as needed, to insure a fair price for dairy farmers.
Gerald Carlin, Meshoppen, PA 11/14/19
Gerald Carlin's comment to FDA's Proposed rule on Ultra-filtered Milk
My name is Gerald Carlin. I am a former dairy farmer but still involved in dairy policy. As you are well aware, Ultra-filtered Milk (UF) and its dry counterpart Milk Protein Concentrate (MPC) have been used in the US food chain for more than 20 years.
From the very beginning, I was aware that some nutrition minded people had deep concerns about the potential effects that the high-pressure ultra-filtration process has on fragile milk protein. At the very least, it seems likely that milk protein is denatured in this process. I am not aware of any legitimate scientific study being done to determine how the human body digests and utilizes these proteins that have been isolated through the ultra-filtration process. It does seem evident that there has been an increase in the number of people who have negative physical reactions to dairy products.
UF Milk and MPC have been widely used for over 20 years to extend cheese yields, create an oversupply of milk, and keep farm milk prices low. It is also clear that cheese quality has declined. Many consumers recognize this, but do not know the reason why or how it has happened.
April 17, 1997, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released its proposed rule on substances Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS), which allowed a manufacturer to “market a substance that the manufacturer determines is GRAS without informing the agency (FDA), or if the agency is so informed, while the agency is reviewing that information.”
Twenty years ago, on February 10, 2000, the National Cheese Institute (NCI) filed a “Citizens Petition” to allow Ultra-Filtered Milk to be used in standardized cheese and simply be labeled as milk or non-fat milk. FDA did not act in favor of this petition. Several other petitions and requests for GRAS have been filed since then.
March 6, 2001, General Accounting Office (GAO) released a report on Ultra-filtered Milk. The report cites MPC imports increased from 805 metric tons in 1990 to 44,878 metric tons in 1999. MPC was blamed for declining farm milk prices. FDA was also cited for “withholding enforcement.” FDA objected to this wording and it was replaced with “exercising enforcement discretion.”
December 18, 2002, FDA sent a warning letter to Kraft Foods North America Inc., charging them with violations of the Code of Federal Regulations for Standardized Cheese. Kraft changed the label from “Pasteurized Processed Cheese Food” to “Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product” and continued to use MPC.
January 1, 2011, new rules went into effect for “fluid milk product”, which applies to any milk product, fluid or frozen, containing 6.5% or more of non-fat milk solids or 2.25% or more of true milk protein. The rule also determines how milk-derived ingredients will be priced under all Federal Milk Marketing Orders (FMMO) when they are used in products meeting the definition.
August 11, 2017, FDA announced “enforcement discretion” for Ultra-filtered Milk in Standardized Cheeses and further stated, “we do not intend to take action against companies that manufacture standardized cheeses and related cheese products that contain fluid ultra-filtered milk or fluid ultra-filtered non-fat milk without declaring them in the ingredient statement, as long as their labels declare milk or non-fat milk in the ingredient statement.”
After nearly 23 years since its April 17, 1997, proposed rule, it seems obvious that there is a reason why UF Milk and MPC have not been given a clear green light by the Food and Drug Administration. Like a passive, weak, and disconnected parent, the FDA has given the dairy industry passive permission, “exercising discretionary enforcement,” to break the rules and adulterate dairy products. Hundreds of millions, if not billions of dollars have been invested in dairy plants to produce ingredients that are being wrongfully used in standardized products. After all, “everybody is doing it” and “we have to do it in order to compete.” In so doing, this has prompted consumers to say “what the @#@# have they done to our food?!”
FDA has backed itself into a corner by its failure to enforce the Standards of Identity for dairy products. The right thing to do is to strictly enforce the traditional Standards of Identity for dairy products. At the very least, FDA must secure the integrity of dairy product labeling by requiring that Ultra-filtered Milk, Milk Protein Concentrate, or any other unapproved ingredient appear on the product ingredient label. Cheese that does not meet traditional Standards of Identity must be labeled as “cheese product.” The same must apply to any dairy product that does not meet traditional Standards of Identity by including “product” after the recognized product classification. This will allow discerning consumers to make informed choices.
Fluid products such as Fairlife must be labeled as “fluid milk product.” Milk that has been altered in terms of ingredients, other than fat, is not true milk and must be labeled as “fluid milk product.”
Changing standards and keeping consumers in the dark is the easy solution. Maintaining and enforcing traditional dairy product Standards of Identity while requiring proper labeling for deviant products is the right solution.
2/9/2020