A lot of my customers say they like my cheese because “goat’s milk is so much better for you than cow’s milk.” I love to hear that, because we raise goats. But is it true?
Here are some common beliefs about goat milk as compared with cow milk:
- It contains less fat
- It contains less lactose
- It’s lower in calories
- It contains less casein
Sadly, none of these are true. In fact, there’s a lot of hooey out there about better protein, less lactose, less acidity, etc.– little of which is substantiated by the chemistry of the milk.
Cow’s milk and goats milk are pretty similar. Goat milk contains marginally more protein, marginally less fat, and a bit less lactose than cow’s milk.* Given the variation between breeds and diet, these statistical differences are insignificant.**
One study suggests that despite the marginally higher protein levels in goat milk, in amino acid digestibility cow’s milk is slightly superior, offering more available tryptophan. But that difference isn’t enough to make cow’s milk a significantly better choice.
Here’s something goat’s milk does have going for it: the fat particles are smaller. That means goat’s milk is naturally homogenized– the fat doesn’t separate out as it does in cow’s milk. It also means that goat’s milk is easier to digest for some people. Many people who have trouble with cow’s milk think they are lactose intolerant. But if you can drink goat’s milk, which contains about as much lactose, it’s more likely the larger fat globules in cow’s milk, not the lactose, that are causing you trouble.
Goat milk also has more availability of a naturally-ocurring enzyme called lipase, which in combination with peculiarities of the fatty acids, gives goat milk its characteristic taste. That makes goat milk stronger tasting if it’s not fresh, but it also makes better cheeses.
In short, there’s not much nutritional difference between goat milk and cow milk. They’re both good milks, and goat milk in particular lends itself to making great cheese.
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* Kindstedt, Paul, American Farmstead Cheese (White River Junction, VT: Chealsea Green Publishiong, 2005) 38.
** Though cow and goat milk are very similar, it should be noted that both water buffalo and sheep milk are higher in fat, protein, and total solids, making them both richer milks than either cow or goat. Sheep milk makes excellent cheese, but is not much found in the U.S.
