European Journal of Applied Engineering and Scientific Research
Abstract
Author(s): Dandare, S. U, Ezeonwumelu, I. J, Abubakar, M. G.
Exogenous nutrients supply in the human diet is required because of their biological significance for general life
maintenance. Milk is said to be the most unique and ideal class of food, because it meets the nutritional needs of the
body better than any single food. This study investigated the major constituents of milk obtained from four different
breeds of cows viz; Holstein Friesian (HF), White Fulani (WF), Red bororo (RB) and a crossbreed (HF+WF) found
in Sokoto metropolis. Proximate parameters - moisture, ash, crude protein, lipid and lactose were determined using
the AOAC methods while EDTA titration and spectrophotometric methods were used to determine calcium and
phosphorus respectively. The results of the proximate composition showed no significant difference (P>0.05) with
the exception of the ash content which differed significantly (p<0.05) between the samples, with the crossbreed
having the highest concentration of minerals (0.97%) and RB with the least value (0.73%), but has the highest
concentration of calcium even though not significantly different from the others. The values of the moisture content
ranged from 81.33%-83%, from 5.7% (HF) to 6.4% (HF+WF) for crude protein, and 5.96% (HF) to 6.8%
(HF+WF) for the lipid content. Overall, the local breeds (WF and RB) have shown more desirable nutritional
qualities than the exotic breed (HF), however, crossbreeding showed a potential improvement in nutrients especially
the protein content. A crossbreed between RB and HF holds a possibility of better nutrient yield, as this local breed
(RB) appears to be a better dairy cattle than WF.
