Paying too little for our food is what’s called a first world problem.
Bloke in Germany
I was absolutely delighted to rediscover something, just a few weeks ago. Actual milk. Full fat. Just pasteurised. Not homogenised. Not “longer life”. Simply squeezed out of cows that wandered around and ate grass. At just 3 times the price of the supermarket-industrial-complex product, and indeed on sale in a supermarket.
Milk hasn’t tasted this good since I was a kid. And while I haven’t found any in the last 20 years, I am glad it’s back. The race to the bottom, which is particularly acute for groceries in Germany, has not yet entirely destroyed all our food.
Hallowed Be
BiG. Supermarket price segmentation wins again. Consumer wins again too, probably with less surplus which make some grumble a bit.
Recently reverted to full fat too. But homogenised. Avoids arguments with people who look like certain idiomatic cats. (brothers in my experience)
Bloke no Longer in Austria
BiG
Weihenstephan milk was always my favourite, made out of Bavarian cows
the milk I used to get in Austria was all from intensely farmed creatures who never saw the light of day. Niederoesterriche Moelkerei was the main supplier in my part of the world. It was OK, but the semi-skimmed or homogenised stuff was awful.
AND milk only really tastes like milk if its from a glass bottle.
Bloke in North Dorset
There’s already a major shakeup taking place in farming that will continue to drive down prices.
A local farm was recently sold and the word is that they are going to build an automatic diary farm on the marginal land. Cows will just be able to wander in and get milked when it suits them. Its already semi-automated at the bigger dairy farms anyway as the dairymen in the pub regularly complain.
Furthermore, I know of 2 farmers who are getting close to retirement who’s children are just not interested in taking on the farm. One of them can’t get his son to work for a few days while they go on holiday. These farms will go up for sale eventually and as the Economist reports there’s a big move towards institutional investors investing in super large farms that provide good diversity of farming and therefore stability of income.
One of our neighbours knocks out a nice line in raw, unpasteurised green top – he delivers it in a glass bottle. There was always an urn and ladle on the back step when I was a teenager, you helped yourself when thirsty. As I’m paranoid about cholesterol these days (having reduced it from 11.2 to 5.7), I tend to stick with the semi-watery stuff.
Hallowed Be
BnliA
“made out of Bavarian cows” — cowjuice – Massai specialty too.
Bloke in Costa Rica
All our fresh milk is 2% semi-skimmed here at best so when I’m back in the UK I rediscover what real milk tastes like. God knows what they do with all the butterfat they skim off. Butter itself is bloody expensive and you can’t get double cream.
I’m not quite sure what the incentive is for the supermarkets to be subsidising the price of milk. Is it a loss leader? I have absolutely no idea what the price elasticity of milk is but I wouldn’t have thought a few pence a pint would make much of a difference.
Bloke in Germany
@BICR,
In Hong Kong you have to be careful that the overpriced “Milk” doesn’t have the word “drink” or “beverage” appended. There is so little fresh supply that milk powder is imported and reconstituted, then tetra-pakked and sold alongside fresh, at the same price. Both go off within 48 hours as well.
Bloke no Longer in Austria
Hallowed Be
I’ve just remembered a song by Half Man Half Biscuit
“How do you get triangles from a cow ?
Buttermilk and cheese and an equilateral chainsaw.”
Paying too little for our food is what’s called a first world problem.
I was absolutely delighted to rediscover something, just a few weeks ago. Actual milk. Full fat. Just pasteurised. Not homogenised. Not “longer life”. Simply squeezed out of cows that wandered around and ate grass. At just 3 times the price of the supermarket-industrial-complex product, and indeed on sale in a supermarket.
Milk hasn’t tasted this good since I was a kid. And while I haven’t found any in the last 20 years, I am glad it’s back. The race to the bottom, which is particularly acute for groceries in Germany, has not yet entirely destroyed all our food.
BiG. Supermarket price segmentation wins again. Consumer wins again too, probably with less surplus which make some grumble a bit.
Recently reverted to full fat too. But homogenised. Avoids arguments with people who look like certain idiomatic cats. (brothers in my experience)
BiG
Weihenstephan milk was always my favourite, made out of Bavarian cows
the milk I used to get in Austria was all from intensely farmed creatures who never saw the light of day. Niederoesterriche Moelkerei was the main supplier in my part of the world. It was OK, but the semi-skimmed or homogenised stuff was awful.
AND milk only really tastes like milk if its from a glass bottle.
There’s already a major shakeup taking place in farming that will continue to drive down prices.
A local farm was recently sold and the word is that they are going to build an automatic diary farm on the marginal land. Cows will just be able to wander in and get milked when it suits them. Its already semi-automated at the bigger dairy farms anyway as the dairymen in the pub regularly complain.
Furthermore, I know of 2 farmers who are getting close to retirement who’s children are just not interested in taking on the farm. One of them can’t get his son to work for a few days while they go on holiday. These farms will go up for sale eventually and as the Economist reports there’s a big move towards institutional investors investing in super large farms that provide good diversity of farming and therefore stability of income.
One of our neighbours knocks out a nice line in raw, unpasteurised green top – he delivers it in a glass bottle. There was always an urn and ladle on the back step when I was a teenager, you helped yourself when thirsty. As I’m paranoid about cholesterol these days (having reduced it from 11.2 to 5.7), I tend to stick with the semi-watery stuff.
BnliA
“made out of Bavarian cows” — cowjuice – Massai specialty too.
All our fresh milk is 2% semi-skimmed here at best so when I’m back in the UK I rediscover what real milk tastes like. God knows what they do with all the butterfat they skim off. Butter itself is bloody expensive and you can’t get double cream.
I’m not quite sure what the incentive is for the supermarkets to be subsidising the price of milk. Is it a loss leader? I have absolutely no idea what the price elasticity of milk is but I wouldn’t have thought a few pence a pint would make much of a difference.
@BICR,
In Hong Kong you have to be careful that the overpriced “Milk” doesn’t have the word “drink” or “beverage” appended. There is so little fresh supply that milk powder is imported and reconstituted, then tetra-pakked and sold alongside fresh, at the same price. Both go off within 48 hours as well.
Hallowed Be
I’ve just remembered a song by Half Man Half Biscuit
“How do you get triangles from a cow ?
Buttermilk and cheese and an equilateral chainsaw.”