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Best long life milk brands in Australia

Aussie consumers have chosen the best long life milk brands for taste, value for money, freshness and packaging design.

Tim Falk
Tim Falk

Updated

Fact checked
Pouring milk in the glass on the background of nature.

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Best Long Life Milk

Best Rated Long Life Milk Brand: Woolworths

Woolworths might be known as the "fresh food people" but it's the brand's long life milk that has won gold this year. It had high scores for – you guessed it – freshness as well as value for money, beating out brands such as Coles, ALDI, A2 and Dairy Farmers.

The best long life milk brands in Australia

How did we choose the winners?

The 2020 Finder Retail Awards recognise brand sentiment from customer feedback on different retail product categories. Finder worked with leading data, insights and consulting company Kantar to conduct thousands of customer interviews around their product purchasing history and satisfaction with their purchased products.

Check out our full methodology.

Top-rated long life milk brand: Woolworths

Woolworths

  • Major supermarket chain brand
  • Offers full cream, lite, skim, lactose-free and soy milk
  • Affordably priced

Australian consumers chose Woolworths as the best overall long life milk brand. Boasting a combined score of 8.31/10, Woolies long life milk impressed Aussies with its taste, freshness and value for money.

Woolworths long life milk ranked ahead of Pauls with a score of 8.22/10, Sanitarium So Good with a score of 8.18/10 and Devondale with a score of 8.02/10.

Woolworths markets its own-brand milk as an affordable alternative to other brands. Its range of milks includes full cream, lite, skim, lactose-free and soy varieties.

Best long life milk brand for value for money: Woolworths

Woolworths

  • Major supermarket chain brand
  • Offers full cream, lite, skim, lactose-free and soy milk
  • Affordably priced

If you're searching for the most affordable long life milk brand, Aussie consumers once again recommend Woolworths. Boasting a score of 4.62/5, Woolies takes the win here as the best long life milk brand for value for money.

Other brands that scored well in this category are ALDI with a score of 4.42/5, Coles with a score of 4.39/5 and Sanitarium So Good with a score of 4.39/5.

The Woolworths range of long life milk includes several milk varieties, including full cream, lite, skim and lactose-free. At the time of writing, one litre of Woolworths full cream long life milk was priced at $1.25.

Best-tasting long life milk brand: Pauls

Pauls

  • Has produced dairy products for over 80 years
  • 100% Australian made
  • Long life milk range includes Smarter White, Trim and Zymil lactose-free

Pauls was chosen by Australian consumers as the best-tasting long life milk brand, scoring 4.44/5. It narrowly defeated the competition, with Dairy Farmers and Woolworths earning the same score in second place: 4.38/5. Sanitarium So Good also scored highly with a score of 4.36/5.

Pauls has been offering its Australian-made dairy products for more than 80 years. The company offers several of its popular fresh milk products in long life form, including Smarter White (2% fat), Trim (low fat) and the Zymil range of lactose-free milk in full cream, low fat and skim varieties.

Best long life milk brand for packaging design: Dairy Farmers

Dairy Farmers

  • Formed in 1900
  • Farmer Sustainability Initiative
  • Offers full cream and skim varieties
With a score of 4.26/5, Dairy Farmers takes the win as the best long life milk brand for packaging design. This was a very closely fought category, with Dairy Farmers only narrowly beating Pauls with a score of 4.25/5, Devondale with a score of 4.24/5 and Sanitarium So Good with a score of 4.21/5.

Dairy Farmers can trace its history back to 1900, when the Dairy Farmers Milk Cooperative was formed in the Illawarra region of NSW. It offers its range of long life milk products around Australia, with full cream and skim varieties available.

Best long life milk brand for freshness: Sanitarium So Good

Sanitarium So Good

  • Established in 1898
  • Soy milks made with non-GM soy protein
  • Product range includes soy, almond, cashew and oat milk
Australian consumers voted Sanitarium So Good as the best long life milk brand for freshness, with the So Good range scoring 4.54/5. This was another closely fought category and other top brands include Pauls with a score of 4.53/5, Woolworths with a score of 4.50/5 and Dairy Farmers with a score of 4.42/5.

Sanitarium Health Food Company started life in a small Melbourne bakery in 1898. This 100% Australian-owned company is perhaps best known for Weet-Bix, but it also produces a range of milks, cereals and spreads. Its So Good long life milk range includes soy, almond, cashew and oat milk.

Methodology

The 2020 Finder Retail Awards recognise brand sentiment from customer feedback on different retail product categories. Finder worked with leading data, insights and consulting company, Kantar, to conduct thousands of customer interviews around their product purchasing history and satisfaction with their purchased products.

Disclaimer: Please refer to our methodology for more information on how we scored and judged Finder Retail Awards candidates. While we endeavour to assess the majority of product providers in the market, this is not always possible and it may be that not every brand in the market was included for judging.

Best rated long life milk brand award breakdown

Overall rating Value for money Taste Packaging design Freshness
A2 4.32 4.00 4.16 4.11 4.11
ALDI 4.36 4.42 4.30 4.14 4.34
Coles 4.29 4.39 4.14 4.00 4.33
Dairy Farmers 4.38 4.08 4.38 4.26 4.42
Devondale 4.42 4.14 4.34 4.24 4.40
Pauls 4.53 4.25 4.44 4.25 4.53
Sanitarium So Good 4.43 4.39 4.36 4.21 4.54
Woolworths 4.54 4.62 4.38 4.10 4.50
Other 4.62 4.48 4.59 4.34 4.55
Data: Finder Retail Brand Survey, 2020, Kantar. Metric out of 5 stars unless indicated. Methodology and more info. Kantar logo

How long does long life milk last?

Long life milk is also known as UHT milk. UHT stands for ultra high temperature or ultra heat treatment, which refers to the fact that it is pasteurised at a much higher heat than normal milk to kill bacteria. The good news is that UHT milk offers all the same main nutrients as fresh milk.

After being treated, the milk is then packaged in sterile cartons and has a typical shelf life of six months. However, once opened, it needs to be refrigerated and typically must be consumed within seven days.

What types of long life milk are available?

You'll see a wide variety of products to choose from when shopping in the long life milk aisle. These include:

  • Full cream. Full cream milk must contain at least 3.2% fat and 3% protein.
  • Skim. Skim milk must have no more than 0.15% fat and at least 3% protein.
  • Reduced fat. There are also a variety of long life milk products with less fat than full cream milk, with fat contents typically ranging from 1.3% to 2%.

As well as regular milk, you'll also find lactose-free long-life milk in all of the above varieties, plus UHT goat's milk.

But long life milk includes more than just dairy products. Wander along the long life milk aisle and you'll also find soy milk, rice milk, almond milk, oat milk and a range of other alternatives.

What to consider when choosing long life milk

There are several factors you should consider when choosing long life milk. These include:

Health requirements

Check the label to find out how much fat is in your milk. If you have special dietary requirements, ask your GP or dietitian for advice on the right milk variety for you.

Allergies

If you're allergic to cow's milk, you may want to consider a milk alternative. If you're lactose intolerant, lactose-free milk can allow you to drink milk without any digestive upset.

Taste

Compare a few different brands of long life milk to see whether you can detect any difference in taste and whether you have a preference.

Packaging

Is the milk packaging easy to open? Is it easy to pour without making a mess? Most long life milks come in one-litre cartons, but smaller serving sizes are also available.

Use-by date

Check how long you have to drink the milk after opening. Some products should be consumed within five days of opening, others within seven.

Price

Remember to consider the price per litre when comparing long life milk. As a general guide, long life milk is typically priced between approximately $1.20 and $2.30 per litre. Soy and nut milks are also a little more expensive than regular milk.

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