Since Brazil has a strong prospect of becoming a major exporter of dairy products, the production chain of milk needs to prepare to overcome obstacles such as non-tariff barriers related to food safety and quality assurance. Thus, this project aimed to gather information and develop methodologies for addressing such a challenge. One of the goals was the physicochemical and microbiological characterization of four dairy products (Minas Standard cheese, curd cheese, condensed milk, and whey powder). The information obtained by the project is available to support official bodies in monitoring the standards already defined and developing technical regulations that may be necessary. Another objective was to study the nutritional aspects of Minas Standard cheese, as its sensory characteristics, mineral composition, fatty acid and protein profiles, and the bioaccessibility of calcium. In addition, the project studied risk issues associated with the spread of pathogenic microorganisms in cheese, as the improvement of microbiological quality control programs is critical to the effectiveness of health surveillance measures, monitoring of safe food security and the quality of those products. In order to improve finding pathogens, molecular methodologies have been developed for detecting Escherichia coli O157: H7, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes in Minas Standard cheese and curd cheese. The methodology used the DNA intercalating molecules with Real-time PCR methods for a faster detection. Another approach was the development of molecular and physical methods to quick milk fraud detection, especially in the aspect of the addition of whey, and mixture of cow and goat milk, which entails risk to allergy sufferers. It is expected that the results help guarantee assessing the quality of dairy products, ensuring the safety and a superiority in kind of each batch of such products before they are released to the market.