Milk

mike rolite

What is the story with milk these days? It used to go off within a day or two of the sell by date but nowadays you can still use it without any ill-effects for at least a week, if not two after the date!
Has there been a change in the pasteurisation process or are we unknowingly drinking UHT?
Anyone got any insider knowledge?

FarmerGreen

They pass it through a microfiltration stage to get rid bacteria before being pasteurised. Its says on the container somewhere.

mike rolite

Ok but why dont they extend the sell by date then? Is it to fool us into buying fresher milk when we dont need to?

FarmerGreen

I'm guessing its so that you can keep using it for longer after its opened.
Less waste for the customer.

brianthebard

What time frame are we talking about here? It could be any number of reasons, along with the already mentioned filtration system, there's also better transport, better milking facilities, better fridges, etc. If the milk is getting to the shop quicker than it used to then of course it will last longer. You can't drink milk after the use by date, or shouldn't anyways. Its there for a reason, and perhaps for safety there's a days grace but I doubt that's the case.

FarmerGreen

This milk has a shelf life of 45 days, and 7 days after its opened
A bit to different to the old sort
Tastes normal unlike UHT