Commercial Mineral Enhanced Dairy By‐Products as Sodium Replacers, Antioxidants and Calcium Fortifiers in Sausages

Sausages are perceived as high in Na and with a too high Na:K ratio. Frankfurter type sausages are regarded as important contributors of sodium in the diet and thereby of health risks. Surplus products from the dairy industry are various mineral powders enriched in either potassium, calcium, or phosphate and include various amounts of lactose. Sausages were produced at 3 sodium levels (equivalent to 13, 15, and 17 g NaCl/kg sausage) using 4 different milk ingredients (a dried skimmed milk powder, a calcium enriched milk powder, a potassium enriched powder, and a lactose enriched powder). The sausages with added calcium and potassium enriched milk powders resulted in the hardest sausages when compared at the same sodium level. Milk mineral addition also produced whiter and less red sausages. No effect on rancidity after 6 wk at chill (4 °C) storage was observed by adding milk minerals, when compared with adding dried skimmed milk powder. A significant advantage of using these milk minerals in sausages is that the Na:K ratio can be reduced from an unhealthy (in this study 36) to a far healthier ratio ( ̴ 2) with limited or no taste changes. High additions of milk calcium (6 g/kg), where Ca‐phosphates prevail, added as milk mineral, had no influence on sensory bitterness or aftertaste as typically observed for CaCl2 additions. Ca additions to sausages are presently presumed to be an advantage with respect to human nutrition. Practical Application Sausages are presently under critique due to their unhealthy composition. The work presented elucidates how different surplus milk ingredients can be used to improve their nutrition. In particular, potassium and calcium enriched milk minerals can reduce sodium addition and provide healthier Na:K and Ca:P ratios without perceiving the bitter taste of soluble calcium.