Dielectric barrier discharge cold plasma processing of camel milk: A non-thermal route for nutrient and bioactive retention

Camel milk (CM) is nutritionally rich but highly perishable, and conventional pasteurization compromises its heat-sensitive bioactives. This study establishes dielectric barrier discharge cold plasma (DBD-CP) as a non-thermal preservation technique that extends shelf life while retaining nutritional and immune functionality. Raw CM was treated under optimized plasma conditions (42 kV, 40 mm electrode gap, 15 min) using M65 modified-atmosphere gas mixture (65 % O 2 + 30 % CO 2 + 5 % N 2 ) and benchmarked against thermal pasteurization. DBD-CP maintained 92.6 % protein, 91.3 % reducing sugar, 91.1 % triglyceride, 94.8 % vitamin D, and 81.4 % ascorbic acid relative to untreated milk. More than 85–90 % of immune bioactive proteins (lactoferrin, IgG, and insulin) were preserved, outperforming thermal pasteurization. Enzymatic assays confirmed partial inactivation of alkaline phosphatase and lactate dehydrogenase, contributing to microbial safety without nutritional loss. Spectroscopic and elemental analyses revealed negligible lipid degradation and ≤12 % mineral variation. Shelf life increased fourfold under refrigeration (16 vs 4 days). The results highlight DBD-CP as a scalable, chemical-free, energy-efficient approach to produce safe CM with retained bioactivity. Its integration into continuous or in-package plasma systems offers a promising route for sustainable dairy preservation and export-ready camel milk products.