Triglyceride profiling of ghee containing goat tallow and admixture of soy oil and goat tallow with a view to detect ghee adulteration

Abstract

Ghee is one of the costliest edible fat; due to high market demand ghee trends to be adulterated with cheaper oils and fats. Detection of clarified body fats addition in conjunction with vegetable oils is still a major challenge for dairy industry to check the menace of ghee adulteration.  In the present investigation triglycerides (TGs) profiling of milk fat using low- resolution gas liquid chromatography has been studied.  In the study it was found that there out of sixteen even carbon number TGs, medium and higher carbon number triglycerides were predominant in both cow and buffalo ghee. In case of goat body fat, triglycerides with 50 and 52 carbon numbers (C50 and C52 TGs) were predominant.  In case of soy oil triglycerides with 54 carbons (C54) was predominant. As a result of adulteration of cow and buffalo ghee with goat body fat individually @ 5%, the summation of these three TGs (sum= C50+C52+C54) was increased to 41.01±1.4% and 32.82±1.78, respectively. Similarly, on adding the admixture of goat tallow and soy oil (1:1) to both cow and buffalo ghee samples at an effective concentration of each adulterant @5% the sum of these three TGs (sum= C50+C52+C54) was increased to 47.66±1.46% and 43.18±2.01, respectively.   Therefore, on summing up the concentration said three TGs (sum= C50+C52+C54) it was possible to detect the adulteration of ghee with goat tallow  individually or in conjunction vegetable oil to the tune of 5%.