The aim of this study was to define the composition of microbiota and the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in samples of raw milk collected for 22 months between 2012 and 2014 originated from north-eastern region of Poland. The results revealed that the VOCs profile changed with respect to the season of milk collection, and milk collected in autumn was characterized by a higher content of acetic acid (C2), propionic acid (C3) and valeric acid (C5), whereas spring was characterized by a frequent presence of acetone (Ac), ethanol (Et) and ethyl acetate (EtAc). Bacterial species composition changed considerably within the tested period and some bacterial species/groups occurred seasonally, e.g. L. helveticus (summer), L. casei (winter). The results show usefulness of the applied techniques (PCR-DGGE and HS-GC) and data analysis (PCA, correlation coefficients) methods in characterizing the raw milk quality intended for dairy production.
Keywords: HS-GC; Microbiota; PCR-DGGE; Raw milk; Seasonal variation; VOCs.