AUSTRALIA – Non-thermal milk processing company Naturo has upgraded its world-first fresh milk processing technology, Haelen, which allows for an extended shelf life of milk to up to 60 days.

The Haelen technology has now been formally validated as twice as digestible as any other cow’s milk, providing a unique health and wellness benefit to the elderly, sports nutrition and recovery, toddlers transitioning to cow’s milk, and people who are allergic to cow’s milk and are looking for gut-friendly milk.

The Haelen Process kills more pathogens than ordinary pasteurization, according to the company, allowing it to be consumed more easily by those with sensitivities to dairy products.

The company added that it is the only known method that kills the unwanted Bacillus cereus, a common pathogen in milk, while also delivering products that are healthier than pasteurized milk as it retains higher levels of vitamins, enzymes, proteins, and other nutrients essential for consumers’ bodies.

Naturo Founder and CEO Jeff Hastings said: “Pasteurisation heats milk to at least 72°C or at least 15 seconds to make it safe, [which] destroys some of milk’s benefits, such as killing all alkaline phosphatase (an essential enzyme for liver function and bone development) and reducing Vitamin B2 and B12 levels.”

Haelen is a gentle method, able to kill pathogens without relying on heat, [which] allows milk to retain higher levels of important vitamins, proteins, and enzymes that otherwise get destroyed or denatured through pasteurization, so the retention of some of these key enzymes can lead to easier digestion as compared to pasteurized milk.”

Naturo treats the whey proteins within the milk differently from typical methods – not relying on the intense heat used with traditional milk processing, such as pasteurization, UHT & ESL – that break down the proteins further than the standard, allowing for easier and faster digestion and enhanced nutrient absorption.

A study conducted by the company showed that two-thirds of participants who usually experienced adverse reactions to cow’s milk found that Haelen processed milk eliminated or reduced the response.

According to Naturo, 68% of the global population is experiencing difficulty consuming milk and their motivation for creating the process was to allow those people to drink natural milk without the usual, adverse side effects.

Haelen has been accepted as an ‘alternative treatment to pasteurization for raw milk’ by Dairy Food Safety Victoria (DFSV), and the technology also received financial support from both the Queensland state government (A$250,000 / US$190,400) and Australian Federal Government (A$1mn / US$761,700).

With Haelen processed milk formally approved by Australia’s state and federal regulators for domestic and export sales, it has become the first non-thermal milk technology to be approved for export.

The company plans to export its 100% natural, fresh & healthy non-thermal milk outside of Australia from October 2022.

 Naturo’s patented processing technology makes it possible to ship, rather than fly, the milk to markets all over the world including Japan, China, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.

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