Degradation of ochratoxin A and aflatoxin B1 in goat milk by dielectric barrier discharge cold plasma: effects on quality attributes.

BACKGROUND: Feed- and food-borne mycotoxins are an important concern in dairy safety, and heat-stable toxins are difficult to remove by conventional thermal processing. In this study, aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and ochratoxin A (OTA) were selected as representative parent mycotoxins, and an artificially contaminated goat milk model was used to evaluate the ability of dielectric barrier discharge cold plasma (DBD-CP) to reduce these compounds. The immediate effects of DBD-CP on microbial load and selected quality attributes were also assessed. RESULTS: The reduction of AFB1 and OTA increased with increasing voltage and treatment time, and followed first-order kinetic behavior. After treatment at 50 kV for 4 min and 30 kV for 10 min, AFB1 reduction reached 64.3% and 54.3%, respectively, whereas the corresponding OTA reduction efficiencies were 69.1% and 63.1%. DBD-CP treatment also effectively reduced the microbial load of goat milk, achieving microbial inactivation comparable to pasteurization when the applied voltage exceeded 30 kV or the treatment time was longer than 6 min. In terms of quality attributes, moderate DBD-CP treatment, especially 30 kV for ≤6 min or <40 kV for 4 min, caused limited changes in pH, titratable acidity, particle size distribution, lactose, protein, soluble solids, and microstructure. In contrast, higher voltage or prolonged exposure resulted in more evident physicochemical and microstructural changes. CONCLUSION: DBD-CP reduced parent AFB1, OTA, and microbial load in artificially contaminated goat milk while largely preserving selected quality attributes under moderate treatment conditions. These findings support its potential as a complementary non-thermal approach for goat milk processing. © 2026 Society of Chemical Industry.