Sponsorship PhD projects Wageningen University & Research (WUR)

As a multinational dairy company, it is of key importance for Ausnutria to increase its global scientific footprint and develop products based on sound science. To this end, Ausnutria is looking worldwide at opportunities for collaborations to conduct the best possible research. In doing so, Ausnutria also wants to support students in their education and research. That is why this year Ausnutria has chosen to sponsor the research of three PhD candidates of Wageningen University & Research (WUR). This concerns research projects in the area of both human (breastfeeding) and goat milk composition, and the impact processing has on the functional properties of milk proteins.

The research of PhD candidate Swantje Breunig is part of this sponsorship. Her research focusses on the natural variation in composition and functionality of goat milk caseins. Swantje: “We do research on goat milk, because at the moment there is relatively little known compared to what we know about cow milk. My research on caseins is part of a bigger picture to understand more about how and why goat milk actually behaves the way it does from the perspective of functional properties.”

Ausnutria has built a broad experience in the development of, production of and research into goat milk products. In recent years there has been a growing focus on the properties of goat milk and increasingly more people are consuming goat milk. Jeroen Kiers, CEO Ausnutria B.V.: “We need science behind the goat milk to fully understand its benefits, so we can utilise those benefits into tangible products.” Greater knowledge leads to greater insight and ultimately to improvements and innovations that enable Ausnutria to serve consumers even better.

With the collaboration, Ausnutria not only supports future academics engaged in high quality, meaningful research, but also invests in research that benefits the goat milk sector as a whole. Jeroen Kiers: “We have chosen to do research to create fundamental knowledge to bring the sector further, as such we would like to work on those topics in a fully transparent and open way.”