Why isn't skimmed milk cheaper?

[fakegermanheiress]

So with skimmed milk, they've taken off the cream, and can sell that at a premium as cram or butter. Yet skimmed milk is the same price as whole milk. Why is this?

Does the process make it more labour intensive? And therefore more expensive?

Presumably production and distribution costs are the same as other milks, or possibly higher because removing things often is.

But cream and butter are more expensive. When I google, it looks like skimmed is cheaper in other countries.

I'm trying to work out why I'm paying the same for less 'stuff'.

You're paying for more processing and the same amount of distribution, packaging and marketing etc.

Plus to make a pint of skimmed milk takes more than a pint, whereas a pint of whole milk takes a pint.

Same reason as (disgusting) low fat yogurt is the same price as (delicious) full fat. The removal process costs money.

Plus to make a pint of skimmed milk takes more than a pint, whereas a pint of whole milk takes a pint.

No, because they sell/use the cream. So a pint is a pint, they just take some off. Whole milk is homogenised, so also processed. I read somewhere that it's all processed the same, but they add the fat back in to make it 1%, 2% (semi) or 4%(whole).

Given the cost of production versus the retail price, the question that responsible consumers should be asking is why is all milk so cheap?

@TheFoldOx this! Completely agree!

Demand and supply? I thought the EU had milk lakes and butter mountains?

We’re not in the EU, haven’t you noticed?

I used to only buy semi-skimmed milk but switched to whole milk. Now, for cooking things like pancakes, white sauce where whole milk is a bit heavy I just do a mix of milk and water and it works really well and saves me money.

The only thing I really don't like using whole milk for is in a cup of tea.

To echo the pp, I hate the way that the supermarkets have driven down the price of milk. I try to only buy milk from smaller producers now.

Yes, I noticed. But that's why milk is cheap, supply outstrips demand.

But why are milk that's had the fat put back in, and milk where the fat has gone to create another product, the same price?

www.dairyuk.org/our-dairy-products/#:~:text=The%20milk%20is%20taken%20to,Most%20milk%20is%20also%20homogenised.

They literally remove the fat and add it back in.

You do know that most supermarkets sell milk as a loss leader? No-one is making a profit on milk. If they sold it at cost plus profit you'd be paying much more for it.

You know nothing about milk. Most farmers can't afford to produce it any more. It's nothing to do with supply and demand. The retailers keep the price artificially low.

UHT skimmed milk is cheaper than UHT semi-skimmed at Lidl.

Because they can charge the same for it and people will pay it, so they can make more profit. They’re not in the dairy industry because they’re passionate about providing dairy products for the masses, they’re in it to make money.

@IdisagreeMrHochhauser

If that were genuinely true, they would not be producing it. If farmers genuinely cannot afford to produce milk, they would stop producing milk, and supply would immediately go down, pushing the cost of milk up. The supermarkets using it as a loss leader has nothing to do with the famers- that's the supermarkets deciding to make a loss on it. If there were no money in milk, farms would all go bust.

The truth is they're not producing it for charity. But skimmed milk being more expensive than whole appears to be a bit of a con.

UHT skimmed milk is cheaper than UHT semi-skimmed at Lidl.

Interesting. UHT skimmed is nicer than UHT semi, as well. Might switch to that for tea, and whole for everything else.

I generally try and buy raw milk from our local vending machine- often cheaper than some supermarket milk. But need skimmed for tea.

On a related note, I am always surprised when people can tell the difference between skimmed, semi or full fat in tea, or in food like pancakes. I can only tell if I drink a glass of it.

You're probably paying for the marketing (that it's healthier?). Even though it isn't.