Subsidised school milk

[YBR]

DD has been getting free milk at school, but it stops when she turns 5. We have an option to buy it at 22p per day for 1/3 pt. We buy milk at £1 for 4 pt bottle. Strikes me that while the school milk is "subsidised", it's nearly three times the supermarket price.
Delivered milk is more expensive, but a school bulk order should not pay as much as domestic rates. Surely the "subsidy" is all being absorbed in admin costs?
Additionally they only supply half fat but in my house we drink whole milk.

I instinctively feel this is not a generous deal, but it's not that £1.10 per week will break the budget.
Seems to me that as DD wants milk I could save by supplying it myself, but only to the tune of 68p a week.

Does anyone feel the same about this milk deal? Has anyone sent in milk with their DC daily? Was their school happy or was it awkward or problematical?
If DD had packed lunch it would be easier to include a flask of milk.

[spanieleyes]

The price is set by the dairy and not by the school. Some of the reasons it costs more in than a supermarket are:

1. It has to be delivered on a regular basis
   
2. it is packaged in small cartons, much more expensive than a larger carton
   
3. the dairy has to run and pay for the administration of the scheme
   
4. the "sale window" is restricted to term times, the dairy makes no profit during school holidays
   
5. supermarkets use milk as a loss leader.
   
   How would you keep the milk cold during the day if you sent your own in?

[hmmmum]

I just pay for my daughter to get the milk at school. i guess part of the extra cost is the packaging. I like it as it is an extra way for her to get hydrated and helps keep her going til lunch time. If you gave it in a flask at lunch it might be less appealing as she's got her food to eat then anyway.
It's a shame it's not full fat milk they give though, I think it's much better for kids than semi skimmed.

[spanieleyes]

This is from our milk provider:

We provide semi-skimmed milk in line with guidance issued by the Food Standards Agency and the School Food Trust and the new government legislation and School Food Plan introduced in January 2015. You can request whole milk for medical reasons by emailing us at [email protected]. The FSA says that children should switch from whole to semi-skimmed milk at the age of two, and the government legislation states that primary school children must receive semi-skimmed rather than whole milk once they have turned 5.

So you can get whole milk but you need a medical reason to do so.

[Tomorrowillbeachicken]

Our price is 20p for fruit and milk.

[Notso]

I pay £1.50 a week for milk/water and fruit.
Supermarkets don't pay nearly enough for milk IMO so I don't think you can compare prices with them. A 4 Pinter from my corner shop which comes from a local dairy costs £1.55, Morrisons 'farmers' milk costs I think £1.20 odd.

[ShowOfHands]

DS keeps telling me he has milk at break time. I thought free milk went out with Thatcher. I've never been asked to pay. Should I be paying?

[Tomorrowillbeachicken]

Not unless they ask.

[mrz]

Children in reception and those entitled to free school meals also get free school milk in England.

[BikeRunSki]

I have done a similar sim to the OP several times, and school milk always turns out pricier than home milk, even though our milk is deliver direct from the farm.

I agree though that it is inaccurate to compare schol milk prices to supermarket milk prices, as supermarkets often sell milk as a loss leader.

[timeforachangeithink]

Yabu, dairy farmers deserve to be paid a decent price for their milk. Supermarkets have bankrupted enough over the past few years.

[Cumberland]

Agree with timeforachange.

[SavoyCabbage]

The extra 68p a week is for the convenience and the packaging. You can buy stainless steel drinking cups from thermos that do keep drinks cold all day but it would have to be remembered and then washed every day.

[SavoyCabbage]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thermos-Stainless-Steel-Funtainer-Bottle/dp/B0148QIJUO/ref=sr17?ie=UTF8&qid=1477207507&sr=8-7&keywords=Funtainer&tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21

[insancerre]

Are you serious?
Just pay the school
Don't send in your own milk
You are being ridiculous

[BurnTheBlackSuit]

Cool Milk isn't a charity though, it's also making a profit from selling you the milk for your child.

If you want your child to have milk at school though it's that or a flask.

Personally I'd rather give my children full fat milk at home. Especially considering the milk cartons sit out on the side in hot classrooms all morning...

[spanieleyes]

They shouldn't. Schools received a fridge to keep the milk in. when we changed milk providers, one fridge went back and another one arrived!

[YBR]

Thanks for all your opinions.
timeforachange (et al) This is not AIBU?! I did ask questions of a practical nature, so thanks to savoy for the useful link.

I do concur that supermarkets run milk as loss leaders - I was comparing What I Pay, and not the rights and wrongs of retail practice. It's really not as if my individual choice on this is going to make a difference to the global retail world.

I hadn't factored in that a whole load more packaging goes to landfill if we buy from the school supplier (I definitely would not expect a school to be fussed with pouring out milk into cups for each class).

insancerre I don't pay the school, it goes to a for-profit company as Burntheblack says, so Spanieleyes the Dairy doesn't pay to administer the scheme either.