If you had any doubts that conventional milk is a highly processed food, you’ll be convinced when you hear about what Coca-Cola is planning for milk.
Coca-Cola – that mega company responsible for nearly 1,000 brands of artificial sugary soft drinks (and all the diseases linked to them) – is responding to consumer demand for,
better, wholesome nutrition from safe, responsible sources, Fairlife, a joint venture between Coca-Cola and the Select Milk Producers dairy co-op, is excited to soon be introducing an innovative ultra-filtered milk that… offers consumers a dairy option that is sourced from sustainable family farms and provides strong market potential to redefine the category.
Are they kidding?
Can you really trust Coco-Cola to source their milk from sustainable family farms? I think their definition of sustainable family farms is quite different than that of a real foodie.
Just Trying to Make a Buck
I guess, of course, they are just trying to make a buck. According to Sandy Douglas, Coca-Cola’s North American chief,
It’s basically the premiumisation of milk… We’ll charge twice as much for it as the milk we’re used to buying in a jug.
They claim the milk will taste better than regular milk, will have 50% more protein, 50% more calcium and will come from sustainable family farms.
The marketing will be very interesting to see – with their claims of a premium product.
What about the fat content? They do not say anything about that. It’s probably skim milk, as that is what they think is healthy and they can separate out the cream and sell it at premium prices.
But is this actually a superior product?
Here I’ll give a great resounding NO!
Do We Need More Calcium in Milk?
Why improve something the nature has made perfect? Do we need more calcium in milk?
No!
It appears that calcium may actually be the cause of a lot of cases a atherosclerosis because it is not being directed (because of a lack of vitamin K2) to the appropriate place which is the bone. Instead it is deposited in the soft tissues like the blood vessels.
According to this study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in Jan 2014, Coronary artery calcium (CAC), measured by computed tomography (CT), has strong predictive value for incident cardiovascular disease (CVD). The researchers found that coronary artery calcium volume was positively and independently associated with coronary heart disease and cardiovascular disease risk.
The presence of calcium plaques is a much better predictor of heart disease than cholesterol levels. The test to measure this is the CAC (Coronary Artery Calcification) Test or Heart Scan. Excess calcium is not a good thing.
Do We Need More Protein in Milk?
No!
Nature has formulated milk with a perfect balance of fats, carbohydrates and protein. To add more protein (and to remove the important fat) makes this the processed product that it is.
What is Real Milk?
Real milk comes from cows raised on pasture in the traditional way. Cows that eat mainly grass have a much better fatty acid profile in their milk. They are also much healthier all around, not needing antibiotics because they are not raised in inhumane crowded conditions. They are not fed growth hormones as practiced with conventional cows.
Additionally, when milk is not pasteurized or homogenized, or processed in any way, it retains all the health benefits of the raw milk that babies (and calves) benefit from.
Raw milk contains many naturally occurring components that actually kill any pathogens that may be in the milk. It has its own immune components that help to strengthen the immunity of anyone who drinks it.
It contains, lacto-peroxidase, lacto-ferrin, anti-microbial components of blood, including leukocytes, B-macrophages, neutrophils, T-lymphocytes, immunoglobulins and antibodies. There are also carbohydrates called polysaccharides and oligosaccharides, important fats called medium chain fatty acids, phospholipids and spingolipids, complement enzymes, lysozyme, hormones, growth factors, mucins, fibronectin, glycomacropeptide, beneficial bacteria, bifidus factor and B12-binding protein.
Wow! That’s a lot of living components!
Pasteurization Kills all the Living Components
Sadly, all these components are deactivated when the milk is heated during pasteurization and ultrapasteurization – processes that are applied to all conventional milk, both conventional and organic.
So powerful is the anti-microbial system in raw milk that when large quantities of pathogens are added to raw milk, their numbers diminish over time and eventually disappear. For a discussion of scientific papers showing the pathogen-killing properties of raw milk, see Does Raw Milk Kill Pathogens? by Dr. Ted Beals. (source)
Importantly, when considering whether or not to drink raw milk, it is critical to know that the milk is coming from a farm that specializes in handling raw milk. See more about how to handle raw milk here.
Recent studies have confirmed the safety of raw milk when it is from properly raised cows and handled appropriately. See more about the safety of raw milk here.
I would NEVER buy raw milk from a conventional farm where the cows are herded together in crowded, dirty conditions that foster disease. It’s no wonder they need antibiotics – they are feed grains and medications and other unsavory things like bakery leftovers and other garbage that no animal should eat.
Raw Milk is a Superfood
Raw milk, from clean cows is a superfood that has been nourishing people all over the world for centuries. It is only in the last 80 or so years that there have been any problems and these have arisen from unhealthy, malnourished cows in dirty unnatural conditions.
If you are interested in the history of real milk, Dr. Ron Schmid wrote The Untold Story of Milk that is a very interesting read!
Stay away from anything Coca-Cola makes – especially milk!
Get more information about raw milk here.
Shared at: Real Food Wednesday, Allergy Free Wednesday
