Acid whey protein and sweet whey protein are both products of cheese manufacturing. Although once a waste artifact that caused disposal issues, whey protein is now a valuable nutritional supplement as well as an ingredient used by the commercial food industry. Acid whey protein and sweet whey protein are produced by different methods and share both differences and similarities in their nutritional profiles and uses.
Production
Whey proteins comprise 20 percent of the total protein found in milk, with casein proteins as the other 80 percent. During the process of cheese making, casein and whey are separated by precipitating the casein proteins either with rennet, an enzyme, or with citric acid. The coagulated casein becomes incorporated into cheese curds, and the remaining liquid contains whey. Acid whey protein is the result of precipitation with acid, while sweet whey protein is the leftover product of enzymatic precipitation.
Nutrients
Both acid whey protein and sweet whey protein have the same complement of proteins: serum albumin, alpha-lactalbumin, immunoglobulin and beta-lactoglobulin. These proteins are nutritionally complete, containing all the essential amino acids you cannot synthesize and therefore require from your diet. However, acid precipitation of the casein proteins from milk, unlike enzymatic precipitation, results in the separation of casein and calcium, with calcium releasing into the whey component. Therefore, acid whey proteins have roughly twice the calcium content of sweet whey proteins. Because the calcium associated with whey protein can affect the properties of food products – for example, a high calcium content can weaken the gel strength of whey-supplemented foods – calcium is sometimes removed from whey proteins used in the food industry.
Uses
Both acid and sweet whey proteins serve as protein-rich nutritional supplements in either powder or liquid form as whey protein concentrates or whey protein isolates. They also both function as nutritious food additives in the manufacture of infant formulas, baked goods, ice cream and beverages. Additionally, sweet whey provides the starting material for the fermentation of mass-produced yeast, another food product employed by the food industry to boost the protein content of manufactured foods.
Considerations
The amount of fat associated with both acid whey protein and sweet whey protein depends on the fat content of the milk used to make the cheese. Whey proteins containing milk fat can negatively affect the properties of the foods they are added to. For example, excess fat associated with whey proteins can destabilize the desirable foam in certain manufactured food products. Therefore, both acid and sweet whey proteins may be defatted prior to their use in the food industry.
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