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In the 1980s, the dairy industry launched a campaign to convince America that milk does a body good. In recent years, milk has become a flashpoint for debate, both in terms of its health benefits and the conditions in which America’s dairy cattle are raised.
Although there is disagreement on the topic, much of the current evidence suggests that, while there are some drawbacks to milk, it is on balance a source of more nutrients than many other foods. What’s more, whole milk, which for decades was seen as less healthy than skim or 2%, has now seen a comeback thanks to a series of studies that have shown that whole milk may, in fact, be healthier than lower-fat milk … including, astonishingly, evidence that full-fat dairy may reduce the risk of diabetes and obesity. (Right now, most schools still carry 2% or skim milk.)
Aldi, like virtually all grocers, carries milk, including whole milk.
Friendly Farms Whole Milk, a staple Regular Buy, comes in the familiar one-gallon jug. Our local Aldi stores sell a variety of other kinds of milk, including 2% and chocolate milk. Most kinds of Aldi milk come in half or whole gallons.
At the time of this post, one gallon of whole Aldi milk costs $3.63. For comparison, Walmart’s Great Value Whole Milk currently costs $3.90. However, the price of milk at Aldi varies from store to store and region to region. While it’s usually cheaper than generic milk at other stores, that’s not always the case.
Aldi, like all grocers, sources its milk regionally. You can find a code printed on the jug that you can put in the site Where is My Milk From to trace its origins. Our milk, for instance, traces its origins to East Side Jersey Dairy in O’Fallon, Illinois, just a stone’s throw across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri. East Side Jersey Dairy appears to be a multistate operation out of Anderson, Indiana. Other areas will have different milk suppliers.
Note the five digit code to the right of the best by date. That’s your milk code.
Aldi’s whole milk carries a “no artificial growth hormones pledge.” The ingredients are just two: milk and Vitamin D3. The ingredients dutifully list milk as an allergen. The nutrition information is more or less what you’d see on any other whole milk gallon. On its face, whole milk has a fair amount of calories (150 per serving) and fat (8 grams, including 5 grams of saturated fat), although, as I noted earlier, there are studies that indicate that this may not be as much of a concern as we once thought it to be.
Nutrition information. (Click to enlarge.)
In terms of how Aldi milk compares to other milk: as far as I can tell, it’s all about the same. Aldi milk, whole or skim, tastes just like any other whole milk I’ve purchased, be it store brand or a regional brand. The milk seems, on balance, to last about as long as other milks I’ve purchased … which is to say it’s unpredictable. I never know from jug to jug whether the milk inside will go bad a few days before the expiration date or days afterward. This has been true of Aldi just as it’s been true of milk I’ve bought from other stores. I can say, though, that Aldi milk tends to be on par, and that the milk I find at Aldi usually has expiration dates as far into the future as other stores I’ve been to.
The Verdict:
As it does with other staples, like bread and eggs, Aldi delivers milk that looks and tastes just like its competitors, and usually — although not always — for a better price. Aldi also sells it in gallon and half-gallon sizes. As is typical with store-bought milk, sourcing is regional; you can determine your source dairy by the code printed on the label. Our experience with Aldi milk has long been about the same as other brands, and for that reason it continues to be our primary choice for milk.
