Method for producing a milk or whey powder, and use of a germ-removing separator

Christian Becker, Leopoldshöhe (DE); Daniel Bussmann, Oelde (DE); Lennart Beick, Bielefeld (DE); Thomas Veer, Beesten (DE)

USPTO: us-12648577 · published 2026-06-09 · patents · A23C 21/00· A23C 1/12· A23C 7/046

Method for producing a milk or whey powder, and use of a germ-removing separator

Christian Becker, Leopoldshöhe (DE) , Daniel Bussmann, Oelde (DE) , Lennart Beick, Bielefeld (DE) , Thomas Veer, Beesten (DE) This is my paper

Pith reviewed 2026-06-11 05:32 UTC · model grok-4.3

classification patents A23C 21/00A23C 1/12A23C 7/046

keywords milk powderwhey powdergerm-removing separatorcentrifugal sterilizationevaporation processbacterial countdairy processingsterilization method

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The pith

A method for milk or whey powder production checks bacterial count and applies centrifugal germ removal if at or above 50,000 CFU/g, with an extra separator step between two evaporations.

A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.

This patent outlines a process for turning skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey into powder that begins by measuring bacteria levels in the liquid. When the count reaches 50,000 colony forming units per gram or higher, a centrifugal germ-removing separator sterilizes the input. The liquid then goes through a first evaporation to thicken it, followed by another separator treatment before a second evaporation, and finally drying. A reader might care because the steps target contamination at measured points in the sequence rather than treating every batch the same way. The approach ties bacterial testing directly to the timing of germ removal inside the evaporation columns.

Core claim

The method provides milk or whey, determines whether it contains 50,000 or more bacteria per gram, sterilizes it with a centrifugal germ-removing separator when that threshold is met, thickens it through first and second evaporation processes in respective columns, applies the separator again to the thickened liquid after the first evaporation and before the second, and dries the result to obtain the powder.

What carries the argument

The centrifugal germ-removing separator, used conditionally on bacterial count and inserted between the first and second evaporation steps to sterilize the thickened liquid.

Load-bearing premise

That applying the centrifugal germ-removing separator at the 50,000 CFU/g threshold and between the two evaporation steps will produce a final powder that meets the intended safety or quality outcome.

What would settle it

A direct comparison of final bacterial counts in powder made from the same high-bacteria milk batch, once with the intermediate separator step after first evaporation and once without it.

read the original abstract

1 . A method for producing a milk or whey powder, the method comprising: providing milk as skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey; determining the skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey has a number of bacteria per gram equal to or greater than 50,000 colony forming units; sterilizing, using a centrifugal germ-removing separator, the skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey responsive to the determining the skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey has a number of bacteria per gram equal to or greater than 50,000 colony forming units; thickening the skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey by a first evaporation process and a second evaporation process, wherein the first and second evaporation processes are performed in a respective evaporation column; sterilizing, using the centrifugal germ-removing separator after the first evaporation process and before a second evaporation process, the thickened skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey to produce sterilized, thickened skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey; and drying the sterilized, thickened skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey to provide a milk or whey powder.

Editorial analysis

A structured set of objections, weighed in public.

Desk editor's note, referee report, simulated authors' rebuttal, and a circularity audit. Tearing a paper down is the easy half of reading it; the pith above is the substance, this is the friction.

Desk Editor's Note private letter to a colleague

Patent claims a two-stage centrifugal separator process for bacterial control in milk powder but supplies no data on whether the second stage works on thickened product.

read the letter

This patent describes a milk or whey powder method that checks the starting liquid for bacteria at or above 50,000 CFU/g, applies a centrifugal germ-removing separator if the threshold is met, runs a first evaporation, applies the same separator again to the thickened material before the second evaporation, and then dries the result. The timing of that second separator pass on the concentrated stream is the part that stands out from standard single-stage approaches. The steps are written plainly and could be turned into a plant procedure without much interpretation. The document does a reasonable job of specifying the trigger condition, the equipment, and the order of operations. The central weakness is the total lack of evidence. No measurements, no log-reduction results, and no discussion of how the separator behaves once the product has higher solids and viscosity after the first evaporation. Centrifugal removal depends on flow and density contrast; the patent does not address whether those conditions still hold or cite any prior work that tested the same equipment in this regime. The initial bacterial count is taken only on the feed, so any concentration effect during the first evaporation is left unexamined. This is a manufacturing-process claim, not a tested result. It is written for dairy technologists or companies that might license or implement the sequence. It is not material for a scientific reading group, would not be cited in research, and does not need academic peer review because it presents no empirical support or new mechanistic insight.

Referee Report

1 major / 1 minor

Summary. The manuscript describes a patented method for producing milk or whey powder. The process begins by providing skimmed milk, whole milk, or whey and determining whether the bacterial count meets or exceeds 50,000 CFU/g. If so, an initial sterilization is performed using a centrifugal germ-removing separator. The product then undergoes a first evaporation to thicken it, followed by a second sterilization with the same separator on the thickened material, a second evaporation, and final drying to produce the powder.

Significance. If the intermediate sterilization step on the thickened product reliably achieves the intended bacterial reduction, the method could provide a practical route for processing high-bacteria dairy feeds into safe powders. The description itself offers no experimental results, log-reduction data, or references, so any significance remains hypothetical and tied to unverified process assumptions.

major comments (1)

[Abstract (method steps)] Abstract (method steps): the second sterilization is applied after the first evaporation, when the product is thickened. No data, modeling, viscosity measurements, or prior-art citations are supplied to show that the centrifugal germ-removing separator maintains effective bacterial separation under the higher solids content and viscosity conditions that follow the first evaporation. This assumption is load-bearing for the claim that the overall sequence produces a sterilized, thickened product suitable for drying.

minor comments (1)

[Abstract] Abstract: the text begins with the numeral '1 .' which appears to be an artifact of patent claim formatting and is unnecessary in a journal manuscript.

Simulated Author's Rebuttal

1 responses · 0 unresolved

We thank the referee for reviewing our patent application. We note that this document is a patent specification outlining an inventive method, rather than a scientific paper presenting experimental results. We address the specific concern below.

read point-by-point responses

Referee: the second sterilization is applied after the first evaporation, when the product is thickened. No data, modeling, viscosity measurements, or prior-art citations are supplied to show that the centrifugal germ-removing separator maintains effective bacterial separation under the higher solids content and viscosity conditions that follow the first evaporation. This assumption is load-bearing for the claim that the overall sequence produces a sterilized, thickened product suitable for drying.

Authors: As this is a patent application, the focus is on claiming the novel sequence of process steps rather than providing empirical data or modeling. The centrifugal germ-removing separator is a standard piece of equipment in the dairy industry, and its application to thickened products is presumed feasible based on existing technology. The patent does not include viscosity measurements or log-reduction data because it does not claim specific performance metrics; it claims the method of using the separator at that stage. We disagree that additional data is required for the patent to be valid, as enablement is met by describing the steps. No revision is planned on this point. revision: no

Circularity Check

0 steps flagged

No circularity: direct procedural description with no derivations or equations

full rationale

The document is a patent claiming a manufacturing method via enumerated steps (bacterial threshold check, centrifugal separation, dual evaporation, drying). No equations, fitted parameters, predictions, self-citations, or uniqueness theorems appear in the provided text. The method is stated as a sequence of actions without any reduction of outputs to inputs by construction. This matches the default non-circular case for non-mathematical procedural content.

Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger

0 free parameters · 0 axioms · 0 invented entities

No free parameters, axioms, or invented entities are present; the document is a process description without mathematical or theoretical structure.

pith-pipeline@v0.9.1-grok · 5777 in / 923 out tokens · 54929 ms · 2026-06-11T05:32:42.151782+00:00 · methodology

Method for producing a milk or whey powder, and use of a germ-removing separator

Core claim

What carries the argument

Load-bearing premise

What would settle it

discussion (0)