Donkey milk research · Study 201

Can donkey milk make cheese? Coagulation trials and first fresh cheese prototypes

Pure donkey milk formed a sufficiently firm curd with calf rennet only under “extreme” technological conditions. The fresh cheese developed from it reached a yield of 5.9% with 32.4% dry matter, 18.5% protein and 2.1% fat. Adding goat milk improved coagulation, and all cheeses were acceptable in the sensory test.

Important: A food technology lab study on cheesemaking. It does not examine any effect of donkey milk or cheese in humans.

At a glance · swipe or use the arrows

The key figures

5.9%yield from pure donkey milk

18.5%protein in donkey milk cheese

2.1%fat in donkey milk cheese

32.4%dry matter

pH 6.12cheese pH

85/15donkey/goat milk (v/v)

70/30donkey/goat milk (v/v)

4parameters varied: pH/calcium, rennet, temperature

β-caseinmost abundant protein in the cheese

Study design

How it was studied

Research Communication from the University of Bari (Italy). In a series of coagulation trials, donkey milk alone or fortified with goat milk (85/15 and 70/30, v/v) was coagulated with calf rennet. pH and soluble calcium concentration, amount of rennet and coagulation temperature were varied. On this basis the authors developed a protocol for fresh cheese prototypes, which were checked for microbiological safety, chemical composition, protein pattern (electrophoresis) and sensory attributes. Assessed based on the abstract; the full text was not available to the editorial team. Specific trial conditions, number of batches, values for the blended cheeses and sensory panel size are therefore not known.

Laboratory study

Study typeTechnology study (cheesemaking)CountryItalyYear2018JournalJ Dairy Res

Interactive chart · values from the study

Fresh cheese from pure donkey milk

Source: study abstract. Yield in % of the milk used; cheese pH 6.12.

Results

What the study measured

Pure donkey milk gave a sufficiently firm curd only under “extreme” technological conditions. The abstract does not specify what these conditions were.

As expected, adding goat milk (15 or 30%) improved coagulation.

Pure donkey milk gave a yield of 5.9%. The cheese had a pH of 6.12, 32.4% dry matter, 2.1% fat and 18.5% protein.

In electrophoresis, β-casein was the most abundant protein in the donkey milk cheese; whey proteins were also present in non-negligible amounts.

The cheeses were checked for microbiological safety. In the sensory test all cheeses were acceptable; the authors describe their flavour characteristics in detail.

Authors’ conclusion: With adjusted parameters, a fresh cheese can be made from donkey milk; goat milk makes coagulation easier. The study provides first prototypes at laboratory scale. It says nothing about ripening, shelf life or any effect in humans.

Critical appraisal

Strengths and limitations

Only the abstract assessedClear limitation

The “extreme” conditions, values for the blended cheeses and sensory details are missing. Funding and conflicts of interest could not be checked.

Lab-scale prototypesNote

The cheeses are first trial products. Whether the protocol works at larger scale remains open.

Blended cheeses are not pure donkey milk productsNote

The improved coagulation applies to blends with goat milk. For pure donkey milk, production remained difficult.

Low yieldNote

A yield of 5.9% means about 59 g of cheese from 1 kg of milk. This makes donkey milk cheese laborious to produce.

Broad product testingStrength

The prototypes were examined microbiologically, chemically, electrophoretically and sensorially.

clear limitationnotestrength

Editorial note: The short communication shows that cheese from donkey milk is possible in principle but technically demanding. The low yield and the special conditions required explain why such products are rare. Further data on ripening and shelf life are lacking. To the research archive.

Research question for DON DONKEY’S®

How does the coagulation ability of our donkey milk change after frozen storage – measured by curd firmness and yield in a small test batch?

Technology studyCheeseCoagulation

Original publication

Technological attempts at producing cheese from donkey milk

Original title: Technological attempts at producing cheese from donkey milk

Faccia M., Gambacorta G., Martemucci G., Natrella G., D’Alessandro A.G.
Journal of Dairy Research · 2018 · 85(3), 327–330

Department of Soil, Plant and Food Sciences and Department of Agro-Environmental and Territorial Sciences, University of Bari, Italy (according to the paper)

DOI: 10.1017/s0022029918000420

Transparency: funding and conflicts of interest could not be checked from the abstract. No product-related statement for DON DONKEY’S®.

Summarised and checked by the DON DONKEY’S editorial team against the original publication · As of: November 2026

End of the study summary

Note on our products

The study summarised above was carried out independently of DON DONKEY’S® and does not relate to our products. It serves solely to inform about the state of research.

DON DONKEY’S® donkey milk and donkey milk powder are foods. They are not intended to prevent, treat or cure any disease and do not replace medical advice.

From our shop

DON DONKEY’S® donkey milk

100 % donkey milk · raw milk, frozen

On this page we report the findings of a published study. Independently of that, you will find our donkey milk here: 100 % donkey milk, frozen as raw milk.

Transparency: The study examined milk from another herd – not the milk from our partner farms.

€24,90

100 ml bottle / 100ml · Unit price: €249,00 / 1 l · incl. VAT, plus shipping

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Also in our shop

Donkey Milk Powder

Donkey milk in powder form

For anyone who prefers a longer shelf life: our donkey milk in powder form – easy to store and portion.

Transparency: The study did not examine our donkey milk powder.