Got Milk?

     They do things differently here. I like it. I find it to be refreshing. It keeps me constantly reminded that I'm on the other side of the planet.

     Everything, from the light switches to the trees, is out of the ordinary for me. One random example of this is milk. They package milk in two different ways. The first is the way that is done in the States with milk cartons stored in refrigerators. The other technique is to package it in box-like-containers, which they leave at room temperature. The "use by" date on these boxes of milk is what really threw me for a loop. Six months. For six months this milk can sit in your cupboard and not go bad. I was really worried when I read this. I just couldn't understand what it could possibly be about the milk that could make it last for that long. Questions like "are there extreme amounts of preservatives in them?" and "do they taste the same?" swirled around my head. Eventually, I accepted it and gave it a try. I was pleased to discover that it didn't taste all that bad. It's much more creamier, but other than that I actually like it.

     I still needed to know why the milk could last for so long. Finally, I was fed up with not knowing and I looked it up. Surprisingly, it contains no preservatives! The type of milk that you find in a box is referred to as UHT (Ultra Heat Treated) or long-life milk. It's exactly the same as your everyday, run-of-the-mill, cold, cartoned milk except it's treated differently. The ultra high heat treatment that they give it kills more bacteria and prevents the milk from spoiling quickly. It even has the same amount of nutrients in it. Now, I'm surprised that we don't have this sort of thing in America. Maybe it's because milk companies just expect that Americans will have the same adverse reaction that I originally had to it. Maybe they're right and no one would bother to give it a try. Maybe it's time we became a little more... open-minded.
     They don't refrigerate eggs either... I'm not so sure about that one.



P.s. This is the beginning of a series of pieces about the differences between the U.S. and Australia.