Douglas Goff, PhD, Professor of Dairy Science and Technology Education at the University of Guelph, Canada, wrote in a 1995 article titled "Homogenization of Milk and Milk Products," posted on the Dairy Science and Technology website:

“Milk is an oil-in-water emulsion, with the fat globules dispersed in a continuous skim milk phase. If raw milk were left to stand, however, the fat would rise and form a cream layer. Homogenization is a mechanical treatment of the fat globules in milk brought about by passing milk under high pressure through a tiny orifice, which results in a decrease in the average diameter and an increase in number and surface area, of the fat globules. The net result, from a practical view, is a much reduced tendency for creaming of fat globules.”

1995