Cut grass smell is key to healthier dairy products!
Cut grass smell is key to healthier dairy products! Dairy products could contain a higher proportion of healthy omega-3 fats all year round, thanks to a discovery reported in the Society for Applied Microbiology’s Journal of Applied Microbiology. Scientists at the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS) at Aberystwyth University have discovered that the chemicals that give cut grass its distinctive ‘green odour’ kill off bacteria that convert healthy omega-3 fats into saturated fats in a cow’s gut. IBERS receives strategic funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). Dr Sharon Huws, Coleg Cymraeg lecturer in Animal Science at IBERS led the research, she said “We’ve known for a while that milk contains a greater proportion of the healthy omega-3 fats in the summer, than in the winter, and now we know it’s probably down to the antimicrobial effects of the green odour products from grass. “Obviously cows can’t be outside all ...