UHT milk, also known as room temperature, high temperature, instantaneous ultra high temperature sterilized milk (VTIS: Tetra Therm Aseptic VTIS) , ultra-high temperature milk processing, its production process is heated 4 ~ 15 seconds under 137 ~ 145 degrees Celsius. Because of the high temperature treatment, some of the milk not heat-resistant nutrients such as vitamins will be destroyed, which will lactose coking, protein and lactose will happen some maillard reaction, make the milk Browning, and destroy the original milk flavor.

UHT milk discrimination method is: tetra brick (pillow) packaging (paper) used to say, in crates in the supermarket to sell, need not refrigerated, shelf life is 9-12 months.

But UHT technology (normal temperature milk main processing technology) will not reduce the nutrition of milk. Milk is rich in nutrition, but the most important, there are four, respectively is lysine (a protein), calcium, vitamin B12 and vitamin B2 (riboflavin), although there will be some components in the ultra high temperature sterilization process is inactive, but did not reduce the nutrition in the milk. Such as:

1. The protein in milk after UHT technology treatment can produce degeneration, it belongs to a physical change, but the degeneration of protein has no effect on its nutritional value;

2. The calcium in milk, heating does not affect the human body absorption use of it;

3. After ultra high temperature sterilized milk does make some is sensitive to heat the vitamins will be destroyed, but the extent of damage is very low. Besides d B2 and vitamin B12 in milk, other human need vitamin content is low, and most of the vitamin access to mainly vegetables and fruits.

[Source from: Barth, Nutritive value of recombined milk, the International dairy federation special issue No 9001, Recombination and milk products, 1990.]

In China, UHT milk (both normal temperature milk) account for more than 70% market share, pasteurized milk share less than 30%. Moreover, pasteurized milk growth speed is slow, only 2% - 2%, normal temperature milk, yogurt and milk beverage rose more than 15%.

As to the relative merits of pasteurized milk and UHT milk, China agricultural university college of food nutrition and food safety system specially made experimental comparison. Results show that both the absorption of calcium, calcium on bone mineral density, and the effect of protein, is no big difference between both.