Choosing the best fresh cow milk at the grocery store can be quite a hassle—lots of isles and such wide varieties to choose from. This is why it can be confusing when you are scanning the shelves for that particular fresh cow milk.
First of all, you need to select which type you want to get as there are varieties like low fat, skimmed, full fat and so on. These days you get a lot of options so choosing the right milk is very important for your health.
Here is a brief and basic breakdown of cow milk which will come in handy when you are searching the grocery store for a fresh bottle of milk.
Basic Information On Cow’s Milk
All cow milk contains a total of 16 essential nutrients which are protein, calcium, and Vitamins A, C and B12. the cow milk you find in the grocery store has one common yet significant difference which is the percentage of fat. If you look at their packaging thoroughly, you can find M.F. which stands for milk fat percentage and if you browse through a couple of products you’ll notice that cow milk comes in 4 types of M.F. percentage.
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- Skim Milk which has 0.1% fat
- Then you have 1% Milk Fat
- 2% Milk Fat
- Homogenised Milk or Whole Milk which has 3.25% Milk Fat
If you want to get low-fat milk then skim milk or 2% M.F. should be your choice. Since milk contains a lot of protein, you’ll benefit greatly from low-fat milk if you want to fat while maintaining your protein intake.
Did you know that since Canadian dairy cows can produce milk all year round, there’s a high chance that the milk you are buying from a grocery store is actually from Canada provided you live in and around Canada?
Different Kinds of Cow Milk Are Available In The Grocery Store
Raw or Unpasteurized Milk
Some countries like Canada banned selling raw milk because of safety concerns as it can cause illness. Make sure that the milk you’re buying from the store is pasteurized and avoid if you are not sure about a certain product.
Organic Milk
When cows are fed certified organic feed their produced milk is called organic milk. Like regular milk, organic milk is safe and nutritious. If you want to support organic agriculture then you can go for organic milk or you can choose it simply because of its better taste.
Micro-Filtered/Ultra-Filtered Milk
It has a creamier taste and most people find it to be fresher than other types of cow milk.
Lactose-Free Milk or Lactose-Reduced Milk
The natural sugar one finds in the milk is basically lactose but some people can’t tolerate this lactose as their digestive system can’t handle it. If you are lactose intolerant or want to buy milk that has no lactose then you can go for lactose-free milk. If you have slight tolerance towards lactose then you can also go for lactose-reduced milk.
Are Antibiotics and Hormones Present in Cow Milk From Grocery Stores?
These days many farms give their cows growth hormone which increases the supply of milk but Canadian cows are an exception. It is different in the case of antibiotics because if a cow gets an infection then antibiotics are necessary to treat them.
However, when a cow is on antibiotics, the milk they produce is not sold. While you are browsing the shelves, make sure to:-
- Look for the best before date on the packaging of the milk to know for how long you can use it or if it’s already expired.
- Cartons of Milk are more expensive than jugs or bags of milk.
How To Store Grocery Store-Bought Milk
- Store the milk on one of the shelves of your fridge because the fridge’s inside door is not cold enough to keep your milk from going bad.
- Do not keep the milk outside and immediately put it in the fridge after taking out the amount you require.
- If your milk is sitting at room temperature for more than 2 hours, you need to throw it away.
- You can store frozen milk for 3 months and the colour will be a bit different when the milk is frozen. You might also see the milk solids separating so when you are using it again make sure to give it a good shake or stir so the defrosted milk’s liquid and solid mix together properly.
- Make sure that you defrost the milk in your fridge.
Tips On Buying Fresh Cow Milk From Grocery Store
If you want a typical suggestion on what will be the best option then considering you don’t have lactose intolerance, go for low-fat/skimmed milk. Low-fat, Fat-Free or reduced-fat milk is easier on your stomach. Regular milk has a lot of fat and will cover 25% of your daily fat intake.
Don’t buy chocolate milk as they have way too much added sugar in them which is bad for health so make it an occasional treat. If you are lactose intolerant then blindly get the lactose-free milk cause you don’t want your body to suffer. Always check the packaged date and the date of expiry to be sure that the milk you are getting is fresh.
The Bottom Line
Milk products are very good for your health and can be a good addition to your diet with proper moderation. If you are suffering from diabetes then there are a lot of other alternatives as well like low-fat milk. This way you get all the nutrients without harming your health.
However, if you find it hard to tolerate cow milk then alternatives like soy milk or almond milk might be a better option for you. So, next time when you are out walking and searching through the shelves of the grocery store, remember the tips and nutritional facts and you can choose fresh cow milk every time!
