Has Britain’s Relationship With Milk Gone Sour – And Is It Time We Made Up?

Are We Actually Ditching Milk?

The amount of milk we’re consuming per person has decreased in recent years, but only slightly, according to data the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) shared with HuffPost UK. 

We’ve seen a loss of about three litres of milk per person, per annum, sold over the past three years – but due to population growth, the volume of milk we’re consuming as a nation has remained static. The amount of total dairy we’re consuming has actually grown by 4% in the past five years, so what’s going on? 

The data could be reflective of our changing eating habits, says Susie Stannard, senior consumer insight analyst at AHDB. “People are buying more dairy alternatives but this tends to be alongside a dairy product,” she says – so for example, people might have an almond milk latte with a cheese and ham panini. 

And although people are consuming milk on fewer occasions each week, when we do drink it, we go to town: “We haven’t seen volume loss,” Stannard adds. “We suspect this is because people are more likely to consume more milk in one go when they do have it – for example, in a latte or a smoothie, which have a lot more milk in than a cup of tea.”

So, Should We Be Cutting Out Cow’s Milk?

People cite cutting out cow’s milk for their health – but is there any truth in these benefits? Dr Frankie Phillips, a registered dietitian and spokesperson for The British Dietetic, says if you haven’t been diagnosed lactose intolerant, there’s no [health] benefit to ditching dairy products as your body is able to digest the lactose. “You will also get all of the other nutrients which are highly available in dairy products, including B vitamins, calcium and zinc,” he says.

In the UK, just 5% of the population are thought to be lactose intolerant, and it’s more commonly seen among Asian and black African populations than caucasians. But even if you are diagnosed, you don’t necessarily need to cut out dairy altogether. “Many people with lactose intolerance can still have cheese and yogurt as the lactose content is very low,” Dr Phillips explains. “Some people find it’s even fine to have a small amount of milk alongside a meal.”

[Read More: Milk and dairy-free alternatives: experts weigh up which varieties are best for health]

The main risk of cutting out cow’s milk is finding another reliable way to get enough calcium, B vitamins, protein and iodine. “If you choose a plant-based milk, I’d always advise checking out the label,” she says. Plant-based milks can be laced with high quantities of sugar and salt. It’s best to look for milk substitutes that are fortified with vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium and, ideally, iodine too, she advises. 

Ditching cow’s milk may not be the answer to your skin woes either, says Dr Emma Wedgeworth, consultant dermatologist and British Skin Foundation spokesperson. Cow’s milk is often blamed as the culprit for blemishes and rashes, she says, but it’s worth bearing in mind most skin conditions are multi-factorial. “Cow’s milk does not cause acne”, she tells me, but acknowledges there are some studies that have linked dairy intake to an increase in acne. 

“Interestingly, some of the studies show that low fat or skimmed milk products are more associated with acne than full-fat dairy,” Wedgeworth explains. “However, the studies are very difficult to interpret and often don’t take into consideration other aspects of a dairy-containing diet, in particular the glycaemic load [a measure which looks at how food raises a person’s blood glucose levels]. Recent evidence has linked high-glycaemic index diets to an increased risk of acne.”