About

David Mark Barbano is a professor in the Department of Food Science at Cornell University. He received his BS in Biology/Food Science in 1970, and his MS and Ph.D. in Food Science in 1973 and 1976, respectively, both from Cornell University. He joined the Department of Food Science as an Assistant Professor in 1980 and became the Director of the Northeast Dairy Foods Research Center in 1988. Professor Barbano is a member of several professional organizations including ADSA, IFT, IDFA, AOACI, IAMFES, IDF, and the NYS Association of Milk and Food Sanitarians. He is a past president of the American Dairy Science Association, a fellow of ADSA and AOAC, and received the Harvey Wiley Award from AOAC in 2010. His contributions include serving on numerous International Dairy Federation Committees for milk analysis and earning awards such as the Cheese Laureate Award in 2018, the DeLaval Dairy Extension Award in 2017, and the Elanco Award for Excellence in Dairy Science in 2015.

Research topics

• Chemistry
• Food science
• Animal science
• Biology
• Biotechnology
• Medicine
• Biochemistry
• Internal medicine
• Endocrinology
• Business
• Chromatography

Selected publications

• Comparison of vanilla-flavored milk protein beverages thermally processed by direct steam injection, retort, and autoclave

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-05-28 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  Ready-to-drink protein beverages are a growing product category. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of 3 common thermal processes: UHT pasteurization with direct steam injection (UHT-DSI; 142°C for 3 s), retort (123°C, time to achieve sterilization = 5 min), or autoclave (112°C for 6 min) on the chemical, physical, and sensory properties of reconstituted vanilla-flavored milk protein beverages containing approximately 6.5% protein. Unheated and heated beverages were subjected to composition, minerals, pH, color, apparent viscosity, particle size, trained panel profiling, volatile compound analysis, and furosine analyses. High NPN values in retort and autoclave beverages indicated possible interaction of lactose with whey proteins that increased their solubility in 12% trichloroacetic acid. Heated beverages had higher b* values than unheated beverages. Sulfur-eggy flavor was only detected in the UHT-DSI beverages, and these beverages had the highest relative abundance of hydrogen sulfide and methanethiol. Caramelized flavor was only detected in retort and autoclaved protein beverages. These beverages had higher relative abundances of nearly all aldehydes, alcohols, esters, ketones, and furans than unheated and UHT-DSI beverages, indicative of Maillard reaction and Strecker degradation products that contributed to the characteristic caramel flavor. Furosine was not a good heat indicator for reconstituted milk protein beverages. Furosine values were higher for unheated rehydrated milk protein beverages than for thermally processed beverages.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Effects of storage time and temperature on the chemical and sensory properties of aseptic milk

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-03-03 · 6 citations

  articleOpen access

  Our objective was to determine the effects of storage temperature and storage time on the chemical, physical, and sensory properties of ultra-high-temperature-direct steam injection aseptic milk. Milk was collected on 2 different processing dates (2 replicates) at a commercial aseptic milk processing facility immediately as containers came off the processing line. Milk was heat treated by direct steam injection (142°C for 3 s) with a flash vacuum cooling step following the holding tube and packaged aseptically in 946-mL aseptic packages. Packages were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatment groups (storage temperature of 4°C or 21°C). Half of the packages of 1% aseptic milk were cooled immediately off the processing line in ice and held at 4°C, and the other half were cooled to 21°C and held at 21°C for 12 mo. An unopened package of 1% aseptic milk that had been stored at 4°C or 21°C was opened and analyzed each month (for 12 mo) by chemical and descriptive sensory analyses. Chemical analyses included volatile compounds, viscosity, furosine, and dissolved oxygen. At 2 wk, 6 mo, and 12 mo, milk samples stored at each temperature were evaluated by consumers along with commercial 1% HTST milk. By descriptive sensory analysis, sulfur-eggy flavor decreased faster and caramelized flavor increased faster in aseptic milk stored at 21°C than in that stored at 4°C. Similarly, relative abundance of sulfur volatiles was lower initially in milk stored at 21°C than in that cooled and stored at 4°C. Furosine concentration was higher in milk stored at 21°C than in milk stored at 4°C. There were differences in consumer liking between the aseptic milk samples stored at the 2 storage temperatures, but they did not translate to an advantage in flavor liking for aseptic milk. Consumers indicated higher liking scores for fresh, refrigerated HTST milk than aseptic milk stored at either temperature at all 3 storage time points. Fluid milk processors need to focus on developing technology to increase the sensory liking scores of aseptic milk to maintain and increase fluid milk consumption as consumer lifestyles increase the demand for shelf-stable beverages.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Interaction of fatty acid composition and temperature cycling on melting properties of milk fat

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-06-11 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  Fat was extracted from milk produced by 40 individual cows that were specifically selected over time in lactation to produce a graduation of natural samples with a wider range of milk fatty acid composition (i.e., ratio of de novo to preformed fatty acids) than would be produced by changes in dairy cow feeding used under commercial dairy herd management conditions. The melting properties of the milk fats were determined using differential scanning calorimetry. Higher levels of de novo fatty acids (i.e., shorter chain) and higher levels of unsaturated fatty acids both caused softening of milk fat, but by different mechanisms. Unsaturation directly lowered the melting point by disrupting the bilayer (2L) and trilayer (3L) triglyceride crystallization process (polytypism) on first cooling, whereas differences in de novo fatty acid concentration likely caused a shift in the proportion of 2L and 3L crystal forms (polytypism) and affected polytrophic behavior. Milk fat with more de novo fatty acids was more responsive to softening by temperature cycling than milk fat with more unsaturation. The impact of de novo fatty acid concentration in milk fat and in the total milk supply should be considered in controlling the hardness of butter.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Effects of storage time and temperature on the protein fraction of aseptic milk

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-06-11 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  <h2>ABSTRACT</h2> Milk was collected on 2 different processing dates (2 replicates) at a commercial aseptic milk processing facility immediately as containers came off the processing line. Milk was heat treated by direct steam injection (142°C for 3 s) with flash vacuum cooling. Half of the packages of 1% fat aseptic milk were cooled immediately in ice to 4°C, and half were cooled to 21°C; both were stored at these respective temperatures for 12 mo, and a new package was opened and analyzed monthly for 12 mo by Kjeldahl analysis for nitrogen fractions, particle size analysis for protein aggregation, visual observation of gelation, and SDS-PAGE to determine proteolytic damage to casein. Differences were found in rates of gelation at the 2 storage temperatures, but the end results of milk gelation were the same. Protein settling in the aseptic milk formed a gel layer that stuck to the bottom of the packages and caused the remaining liquid product poured from the containers to decrease in protein concentration with time of storage. Quantitative SDS-PAGE analysis did not show evidence of proteolysis from native milk proteases or heat-stable microbial proteases during product storage. Thus, nonproteolytic changes in the milk were responsible for age gelation of this product. Extensive heat-induced disulfide covalent binding of whey proteins to κ-casein occurred at the surface of the casein micelles, forming a larger, more hydrophilic covalently bonded κ-casein–whey protein complex on the surface of the casein micelles. Further increase in the hydrophilic character of this complex probably occurred due to thermally induced lactosylation of the whey proteins caused by UHT and the browning process. With storage time, the concentration of the highly hydrophilic κ-casein–whey protein complex increased in the serum phase of the milk, whereas the gel was enriched in the more hydrophobic α_s-casein and β-caseins.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Effect of prepartum dietary cation-anion difference strategy and level of dietary calcium on postpartum blood calcium status and milk production of multiparous Holstein cows

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-05-16 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access

  Hypocalcemia in dairy cows can be mitigated by manipulating prepartum DCAD. What remains unclear is the degree to which DCAD diets should be implemented and the appropriate level of dietary Ca to be fed in conjunction with negative DCAD. This study examined 2 prepartum DCAD levels, 2 prepartum dietary Ca levels, and their interactions on postpartum Ca metabolism, DMI, and milk performance of Holstein cows. In a randomized block design, data from parous Holstein cows (n = 98) enrolled in the study from 32 d before expected calving through 63 DIM were used for analysis. At 26 d before expected calving, cows were assigned to 1 of 4 treatments in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with main effects of DCAD (-2.61 mEq/100 g, partial acidification [PAS] vs. -10.26 mEq/100 g, full acidification [FAS]) and Ca (1.5% DM, high Ca [HCa] vs. 0.7% DM, low Ca [LCa]). Cows fed FAS and PAS diets targeted urine pH of 5.5 to 6.0 and 6.5 to 7.0, respectively. Cows fed FAS had lower urine pH and greater prepartum urinary ammonium excretion than cows fed PAS (FAS 5.64 vs. PAS 6.71 ± 0.10 pH). Urine was collected for mineral analysis once per week upon enrollment until parturition and at 1, 2, and 3 DIM. Blood samples were collected once per week from enrollment until 1 wk before calving then at 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, and 3 DIM for analysis of Ca, Mg, and P. Dry matter intake and milk production were recorded daily, and BW data were collected weekly. Statistical analyses were conducted using SAS software (v. 9.4) using linear mixed models with covariates and repeated measures when appropriate. Differences in pre- and postpartum DMI were not detected between FAS- and PAS-fed cows. Prepartum DMI was not affected by dietary Ca level. Postpartum DMI and ECM were greater for cows fed HCa than LCa prepartum. Circulating postpartum total Ca was not different by prepartum Ca nor prepartum DCAD. Cows fed FAS excreted more urinary Ca than cows fed PAS prepartum and cows fed LCa excreted more urinary Ca than their HCa fed counterparts. In the conditions of this study, milk production and postpartum intake were not affected by magnitude of prepartum acidification. Feeding greater dietary Ca in the prepartum period improved postpartum DMI and ECM yield, independently of prepartum acidification level.

  PublisherDOI

• A sedimentation test to measure heat stability of milk protein beverages

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-07-18 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access

  A small-scale oil bath immersion-heating system using sealed stainless-steel process tubes was developed that has the flexibility to evaluate a wide range of holding temperatures and times. After heat treatment and rapid cooling, the liquid product was removed from each stainless-steel tube and a centrifugal protein sedimentation test and laser light scattering particle size analysis were done to determine differences among milk protein beverages in heat stability and casein micelle aggregation before and after thermal processing. The sedimentation and particle size analysis method was able to determine differences in protein sedimentation and casein micelle aggregation of milk protein concentrate (MPC) solutions with 85% protein on a DM basis (MPC85) that were rehydrated at 4°C overnight and heated to 55°C and smoothed by homogenization or not smoothed. The cold rehydrated homogenized MPC85 solutions had a casein micelle size particle distribution similar to skim milk. Smoothing reduced particle size before heat treatment and reduced heat-induced protein aggregation versus no smoothing. The oil bath method was applied to cold rehydrated and smoothed MPC85 high-protein beverages over a range of temperatures typical of retorting and UHT-direct steam injection processing with and without added dipotassium phosphate (DKP). The oil bath heat stability method was able to detect differences in sedimentation and casein micelle aggregation with increasing temperature and the large effect of added DKP in preventing protein sedimentation and casein micelle aggregation. Eight different lots of rehydrated commercial MPC85 powders were rehydrated and smoothed; the method was able to identify 2 out of 8 MPC85 powders that had lower heat stability and more casein micelle aggregation than the others. The heat stability method could be a practical tool to screen heat stability of small volumes of different protein beverage formulations and help avoid pilot plant or preliminary production runs on products that will not be heat stable.

  PublisherDOI

• Predicting dyscalcemia status in early-lactation multiparous Holstein cows using milk weight and constituent analysis from a single milking at 4 days in milk

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-07-15

  articleOpen access

  Many multiparous cows struggle to adapt to the challenges of the early postpartum period. Dyscalcemia, a condition defined by low blood calcium concentrations at 4 DIM and associated with suboptimal performance across a spectrum of epidemiologically important outcomes (health, productivity, and reproductive success), can be a useful indicator that maladaptive phenotypes are developing in early postpartum dairy cows. Identifying dyscalcemic cows, though theoretically useful from a management perspective, is not logistically viable for commercial dairy farms due to the costs and labor that would be involved in the collection and analysis of samples. Furthermore, timely methods of analysis are lacking. Therefore, our objective in this cross-sectional study was to develop a predictive model for establishing dyscalcemia status by applying machine learning approaches to milk weights and milk constituent data predicted using Fourier-transform mid-infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) from a single milking at 4 DIM. We hypothesized that such a model would have adequate diagnostic characteristics. To test this hypothesis, we collected blood, milk weights, and proportional milk samples from 542 multiparous Holsteins on 5 commercial dairy farms in central New York at 4 DIM. Blood was analyzed for serum total calcium concentration and milk was subjected to FTIR analysis from which constituent data were predicted. Cows were diagnosed as having dyscalcemia if they had serum total calcium concentration ≤2.2 mmol/L at 4 DIM, and as eucalcemic if their serum total calcium concentrations were >2.2 mmol/L at this time. Using milk yield data and the concentrations of anhydrous lactose, true protein, fat, and fatty acid groups, including de novo, mixed, and preformed, all measured in g/100 g milk, as well as milk urea nitrogen (mg/100 g milk), and milk ketone bodies (BHB and acetone; mmol/L) we fit and cross validated random forest models stratified by parity group (2, 3, and ≥4) and farm, for the prediction of dyscalcemia status, our main outcome of interest. We found that on average our models performed favorably with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.95 (95% CI: 0.86-1.00), accuracy of 0.90 (95% CI: 0.81-0.98), sensitivity of 0.85 (95% CI: 0.64-1.00), specificity of 0.91 (95% CI: 0.84-1.00), positive predictive value of 0.71 (95% CI: 0.32-1.00) and negative predictive value of 0.96 (95% CI: 0.89-1.00). The data providing the most valuable information to our models were milk weight, and concentrations of lactose and protein. These findings, though limited to a single geographic region, time of day, milking schedule, and season, support the concept that machine learning approaches combined with milk constituent data could become a valuable tool for discriminating between dyscalcemic cows and their eucalcemic counterparts in the early postpartum period.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Impact of lactose and soluble milk salts on the heat stability of milk proteins

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2025-11-08

  articleOpen access

  Our objective was to determine the separate effects of lactose, soluble mineral concentration, and added dipotassium phosphate (DKP) on the heat stability of milk protein beverages made from rehydrated milk protein concentrate (MPC) with 85% crude protein on a DM basis (MPC85). Seven batches of rehydrated (7.5% protein) liquid MPC were made from each of 2 lots of MPC85 powder. Treatment 1 was 7.5% MPC85 in deionized (DI) water. Treatment 2 was 7.5% MPC85 that was rehydrated with 4°C Jenness-Koops (JK) buffer, a mix of salts that simulate milk salts. Treatment 3 was 7.5% MPC85 with JK buffer with 4.8% (wt/wt) anhydrous lactose added. Treatment 4 was 7.5% MPC85 with a dilution of JK buffer to ∼14% of its original concentration. Treatment 5 was 7.5% MPC85 with diluted JK buffer with lactose added to 0.6% (wt/wt). Treatment 6 was 7.5% MPC85 in DI water with 0.15% (wt/wt) DKP. Treatment 7 was 7.5% MPC85 rehydrated with 4°C UF permeate. Heat stability testing was conducted using an oil bath with a 30-s hold time at 6 temperatures: 135°C, 140°C, 145°C, 150°C, 155°C, and 160°C. The composition of the solute phase of rehydrated and smoothed dried MPC85 had a large impact on the heat stability and aggregation of milk proteins caused by UHT thermal processing temperatures. When MPC85 was rehydrated in deionized water, it had the highest heat stability and the least protein aggregation, and the heat stability was not increased by the addition of DKP. The heat stability of MPC85 was decreased by rehydration in a typical concentration of milk salts (i.e., JK buffer) and was further decreased by the addition of 4.8% anhydrous lactose to the JK buffer. When the MPC85 was rehydrated in UF milk permeate (i.e., milks salts + lactose), the heat stability was comparable to the JK buffer with added lactose. Using diluted JK buffer (∼14% of the level of milk salts and lactose) in MPC85 resulted in increased heat stability that was similar to rehydration in deionized water.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Erratum to “Ultrafiltration: Effect of process temperature (7°C and 50°C) on process performance and protein beverage physical, chemical, and sensory properties” (J. Dairy Sci. 107:8919–8933)

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2024-12-01

  erratumOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Ultrafiltration: Effect of process temperature (7°C and 50°C) on process performance and protein beverage physical, chemical, and sensory properties

  Journal of Dairy Science · 2024-07-19 · 7 citations

  articleOpen access

  Our objectives were to determine the impact of ultrafiltration (UF) of skim milk at 7 and 50°C on UF processing, lactose removal, mineral partitioning, and skim milk retentate physical, chemical, and sensory properties at 3 (3.4 7.5, and 10.5%) protein concentration with 2 different heat processing treatments high temperature short time (HTST) pasteurization and autoclave). Pasteurized skim milk was split into 2 portions and the 7°C UF processing run was done on one day and the 50°C UF processing run was done on the next day. Skim milk was ultrafiltered and diafiltered at 7 and 50°C and as permeate was removed, deionized water at 7 or 50°C was added in an equal amount by weight as permeate removed to maintain constant protein concentration in the retentate during UF until 98% or more of lactose and low molecular weight soluble milk components were removed. All skim milk-based beverage bases from the 7 and 50°C UF of skim milk were HTST (78°C for 15 s) processed or autoclaved (116°C for 6 min). The physical, chemical, and sensory properties of all treatments were measured. This process was replicated twice with a new batch of pasteurized skim milk in a different week with the 7 and 50°C UF processing runs ran in reverse order. Overall, lactose-free skim milk at 3.4, 7.5, and 10.5% protein produced by UF with DF, was more bland, more white and less heat stable (i.e., stable to retorting but not direct steam injection at 142°C for 2 to 3 s) than skim milk based on both sensory scores and instrumental measures. A 98 to 99% removal of lactose from skim milk was achieved (final lactose concentration <0.06 g/100g) with a diafiltration ratio of water to milk of about 4 to 1 was used at both 7°C and 50°C. The processing time to achieve that lactose removal from the same starting weight of milk was about twice as long when filtering at 7°C than 50°C because of the lower flux (23 versus 48 kg/m2/h). The continuous DF at constant protein concentration maintained constant flux for a processing time of 4 and 8 h at 50 and 7°C, respectively. The final freezing point of the lactose and soluble mineral reduced milk was close to that of water (−0.015°C versus −0.525°C for skim milk) and the pH of the lactose-free milk at 20°C increased from about 6.5 for skim to about 7.33 and 7.46 for UF/DF skim milk at 7 and 50°C, respectively. Removal of compounds that absorb light (in the range of 360 to 500 nm) from milk in the permeate, increased light reflectance and whiteness and decreased yellowness relative to the starting skim milk.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Ronald Richter

  Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

  72 shared

• Joanna M Lynch

  University of Pennsylvania

  61 shared

• Paul S. Kindstedt

  University of Vermont

  49 shared

• J. Joseph Yun

  44 shared

• J.A.A. McArt

  New York State College of Veterinary Medicine

  41 shared

• G.F. Hartnell

  Hartnell College

  40 shared

• J.W. Fuquay

  Mississippi State University

  38 shared

• D.K. Beede

  38 shared

Education

• B.S., Biology/Food Science

  Cornell University

  1970

• M.S., Food Science

  Cornell University

  1973

• Ph.D., Food Science

  Cornell University

  1976

Awards & honors

• Harvey Wiley Award of AOAC (2010)
• Cheese Laureate Award 2018
• DeLaval Dairy Extension Award 2017
• Elanco Award for Excellence in Dairy Science 2015
• Fellow of ADSA