Got Milk? ...just 50%...

Now a quiz for you. You see above 2 boxes of milk. Leaving out the writing, name and so on, can you tell the difference between the two?

...ready?...did you find out? The difference is...the small half circle punch on the rigth box upper left side.

I was really curious about milk. The price range is high and the choice of milk is huge. You have some 10-15 different kind of milk. And the price ranges from 140 yen to 290 yen for 1 liter (CHF 1.80 to CHF 3.50).

So, i've asked a native what is that difference. The answer was plain and simple. "The expensive one, the one with the cut, is real milk". Real milk? I really had to ask a few times before i could figure out what "Real Milk" meant.

Apparently, the cheapest milk is made with 50% of real milk and 50% of milk pouder. Real milk is 100% fresh milk. In addition, the milk here seems to expire quite quickly, in about two weeks. In switzerland we have UHT milk that can be kept for 3-4 months, even outside the fridge. The difference is that UHT Milk (Ultra High Temperature) had been heaten up for few seconds, to kill all the germs but preserve the quality of the milk and ease the storage.

Since there is no way i'm paying 290 yen for 1 liter of milk, i'm going for the time being for the half real milk. The taste is ok. I wouldn't have noticed if i wasn't told.

In any case, next time you travel to japan and want real milk, just remember to look for the milk box with the pierced ear...