Is there fresh milk in France?

[Clareh]

Can anybody help?

I have been told that there is no fresh milk in france and that they just have the bottled strerile milk, is this true?

[Chrisb]

You can certainly get it up here in Normandy - it just might not be where you would expect it to be! I have seen it between the butter and cheese - logical, but also with the chilled fruit juices - less logical! It comes in both wax cartons and plastic bottles in full-cream (entiere) and semi-skimmed (demi-creme) - sometimes it says just 'lait pasteurise', sometimes 'frais' ie fresh.(Sorry, no accents). It can be easy to miss because there may only be a row or 2, or even only a carton or two, not like in the UK.

Happy hunting!

Regards

Chris

 

[Mpprh]

Hi

Yes, even small supermarkets carry it in the chilled section ......... and I've never seen a dairy cow near here !

The French don't consume much milk, but this is changing as the breakfast cereal market grows in France. It used to be a carton of cornflakes in the exotic food section, but now it is about half a row. Anyone know where the Sugarpuffs went ?

Peter

[Miki]

I have been told that there is no fresh milk in france and that they just have the bottled strerile milk, is this true?

Dare I say yet another case of the old ex-pat chinese whispers at work !! 

I am not sure about everyone but after a very short while, one gets used to the long life semi skimmed and as it is a pain sometimes to go out and get the fresh stuff, many people carry a healthy stock of  "demi écrémé" not in bottles though but in the cartons or the plastic bottle.

Lots of choice of all kinds of milk now days in France. Around here, you can get it a few minutes after it leaves its "natural habitat", you can't get much fresher than that !!  

 

 

 

[Isaacsnana]

You can certainly get fresh milk in our Super U and Intermarche.  I have to buy Entier for TOH, but I buy the long life Ecreme for myself, as I actually like it. Straight from the fridge by the glassful. It hasnt got the awful taste of the English full cream long life.

[Dick Smith]

After years of semi-skimmed (almost wrote semi-skilled) milk in the UK I find the Normandy 'lait entier' to be too rich, and like you I'm a milk drinker. All of our local supermarkets have it, though the demi-ecrémé fresh isn't always easy to find. I've never seen sterilised - I assume that we are talking about UHT?

[Mysfloss]

[quote]HiYes, even small supermarkets carry it in the chilled section ......... and I've never seen a dairy cow near here !The French don't consume much milk, but this is changing as the breakfast cereal mar...[/quote]

"the french dont consume much milk"is this due to the fresh milk pipeline from jersey being blown up by the st hellier mafia?

[Val_2]

I couldn't believe this question. Of course there is fresh milk in France, gallons and gallons of it,it's just that the locals prefer black coffee and keep packs of Long Life Bulls Milk for ease. I buy two fresh bottles every two days and sometims have to fight for it as people do use it for their cereals. There is also "Crue" if you want it and that horrible sour Lait Ribot which I once put in some tea when I first came to France. My husband is a dedicated milk drinker but now prefers drinking Lidls long life milk and as a person who cannot fresh normal cow's milk on it's own, I have also taken to drinking this one.

[Hoddy]

Fresh milk is not as readily available in our little corner of south-west Dordogne as it is in the UK. The local supermarket frequently runs out, especially when there are a lot of English visitors about. This is despite the fact that there are two dairy herds within walking distance of our house. As with so much else in France it seems to depend on where you are.

Hoddy

[Leschenauds]

Certainly get it in the Creuse, there is a range of options, semi skimmed (think that is a blue top). "Proper" pasteurised whole milk, with a red top and something with a green top, possibly fully skimmed.

Our local "Champion" now sells more red top that anything.

Neither of us like any type of skimmed milk in tea or on cereals.

[Liz]

There is, of course, although it is not so much used as in the UK (tea comes without milk!). The only kind I have never seen is fresh skimmed milk, AFAIK this does only come in the long life version. It may be a regional thing but I have never seen it in my travels through France.

Liz (29)

[Sarah]

Yes there is fresh milk but usually only to be found in the larger supermarket chains, or sometimes in a health food shop.  square sides and a yellow cap.  As everywhere not much as it all goes into making those wonderful cheeses. sarah

[derf]

I have never found it difficult to obtain, either in the Dordogne or Lot et Garonne, we buy semi skimmed in 1 liter plastic bottles and freeze them, after thawing it still keeps well in the fridge for a long time.

[graham34]

Those with long memories for taste will know that French UHT or long-life milk was somewhat of an acquired taste, especially in one's cuppa. Technology seems to have made great stides in recent years and I can't distinguish it from fresh, at least at the demi-creme level.

Graham

[Foxtrot]

Lait ribot is sort of yoghurty and is traditionally drunk with crepes in some parts of Brittany. I've got a French friend who can't eat a crepe unless she's got a lait ribot moustache first.

I tend to buy industrial quantities of UHT milk, yes about 20 litres a week which my husband and 3 kids all drink and I buy fresh pasteurised milk for me; I think tea tastes awful with UHT but that's just my opinion.

My husband was brought up on a farm with cows and he drank powdered re-constituted milk in the 70's because his mother thought it was better for him! I also know that milk is often considered by some French people to be, at worst "poison" and at best "indigeste", the greatest crime being to put it in coffee since you will not be able to digest it. Having said that, drinking large quantities of milk can give calves cirrhosis of the liver, don't know about humans.

Katie

[Teamedup]

All the Carrefour's around here have a good selection of fresh milk including full milk. It is usually in a fridge near the eggs and boxed milk and is in glass bottles.

And like Foxtrot, I buy lots and lots of milk. We always used to use around 3-4 litres a day when the boys were here and more when we had guests. Even now when there is just the two of us we still use a lot more than some families I know, who have small children.

[Tresco]

What a diverse range of responses. I used to love the milk my milkvan came with in UK, and I have been permanently dissatisfied since coming to France.

Strange, isn't it, a country with 2 or 3 isles of milk products, but no milk - as you know it.

In some supermarches it is hidden, almost as pornography is in UK (but not in france, here, that's right down there, literally, if not metaphorically, with diy).

You must search for your non UHT milk, and embarrass yourself asking people where it is. It may be in a tiny little chiller cabinet, next to the cat food, or it may be snuggled up to the cheeses, yoghurts etc.

In my experience, it has a red cap, and is in a plastic bottle. Confused? You will (continue to) be.

[zeb]

[quote]Those with long memories for taste will know that French UHT or long-life milk was somewhat of an acquired taste, especially in one's cuppa. Technology seems to have made great stides in recent years ...[/quote]

You are dead right Graham - I can remember holidays in France years ago when I couldn't wait to get back to the UK for a decent cup of tea as the milk here smelt and tasted so foul!

When we first moved out here I thought things were the same and drove miles several times a week (very small freezer then) for fresh milk in plastic bottles from supermarkets (you have to pick your days - it's only delivered to the shops two or three times a week!). Then I was carless for a bit, hubby did the shopping and brought home  loads of UHT milk "Petit Vendeen" - pretty boxes of locally produced UHT'd milk with cows and map on packet.

No smell! No foul taste! Can be drunk in tea and on cereal or by the glass full just like fresh milk. We buy loads of cartons at a time and only need shop once a week now!

regards.....helen

[Kaf]

Fresh milk is readily available in most of our local supermarkets. We have the luxury of living next to a dairy farm and they give us milk fresh from the cow. This is wonderful on Weeyabix or cornflakes but too rich for our tastes for a cup of tea, so I buy red top when I shop and freeze it. It freezes well in the plastic bottles and we always have a supply, (as long as we remember to take it out of the freezer!

Karen

[opas]

Fresh milk! wouldn`t know about that, but they do some rather good wines

[Kazanton]

Once every two weeks, on a Saturday 'morn while the children are in school, I load my pre-sterilised plastic one litre milk bottles into my backpack, climb on my bike, and cycle the 3 km up the hill to our local organic dairy farm. There I can purchase lait crue straight from the morning's milking, organic, non-pasturised and oh-so-fresh. I buy from 4 to 8 litres and it is a fraction of the cost of the store-bought lait frais. Freezes beautifully (but keep upright, make sure it is filled to 2" down from the top for expansion and keep the top off or very loose until the milk is frozen. Then screw down the lid. Or you might end up with a burst or very bulgy bottle! )

They also do a range of Organic Artisan Ice Cremes, and I usually have to get one or two containers, for the children, mind!

Luckily the ride back into town is all downhill...

[Stew]

And here's another French Dairy Paradox ... cream.

Given that there are huge dairy herds, and given the French culinary tradition, where is all the cream?

In the UK you can buy single cream, double cream, whipping cream, sour cream, slightly thicker than single but not quite double de-caff low-cal vegetarian cream. As well as creme fraiche and the like.

Here you can only find TINY little cartons of creme liquide.

Whassup with that?

Stew

[Teamedup]

Creme Fraiche is french cream and is easily available. It is rare that I use it, I don't like that slightly 'turned' flavour, that we seem to get everywhere else in France but Normandy. I'll stick to my little boxes of Elle et Vire cream, make lovely chantilly with that.

[Battypuss]

You can get crème cru as well, not so sour as fraiche. Kids have been brought up drinking semi skimmed, done them no obvious harm. Went to England once, they had a pint of ordinary english milk and wouldn't drink it after one sip. I'm allergic to the stuff anyway...

[Alexis]

Most of the cream goes to make up the fat levels in the cheese.

New here is the creme fraiche liquide.  Not bitter at all.  Pour it on my trifle.