Why does cholov yisroel milk have such a short shelf life?

Question

Since I started keeping cholov yisroel at home, I've had to change my buying habits because the milk (and yogurt) spoils so fast. I've tried several brands from several stores, and it is always the same: the stuff spoils within ten days inevitably. Others I've talked to report the same experiences.

I'm not saying this is so bad; I'm just wondering why it is, since cholov yisroel dairy is already more expensive, and one would think that the extra measure of supervision would if anything make it fresher, as is probably the case with kosher meat.

So, what's the answer? Why does cholov yisroel dairy spoil so much faster than cholov stam?

Answer 1

I've noticed the same problem quite consistently. Although, I must admit that some brands of Chalav stam milk have the same problem.

I'll relay what I have heard from 3 store owners in the NY area. All of them said that for some reason, many of the Chalav Yisra'el companies do not sufficiently refrigerate their milk. 2 of the 3 owners told me that sometimes the deliverers are leaving the milk crates out of the truck too long until it gets into the store's fridge (I guess there is some time in between when the store needs to do inventory or some other tasks. I didn't ask about those details.) In some cases, the milk crates are sitting on hot pavement during the summer! (I can't fathom why an "honest" store manager would want to sell such milk to his customers, but that's a different problem - possibly with halachic problems.)

Keep in mind that this info could be occurring moreso in the New York metro area, and perhaps in larger stores than others. The store managers owned fairly large supermarkets. I can only go by what they have told me. FWIW, I have personally seen a few stores where the milk is sitting on the hot pavement, (in the summer, pavement temps in NYC can reach 120 deg. F. You can determine how long the milk will stay fresh at that temp.) and I have seen it a few times. I'm appalled, myself, that such milk is eventually sold to the consumer.

Answer 2

I've had the same question. The following is what I've been told by people who claim to be in the know. I can't verify whether the facts or the science is true.

The short answer is a lack of injection of certain growth hormones into the dairy cows.

The longer version. A large portion of the Chalav Yisroel milk (at least in the east cost U.S.A.) come from farms run under Hassidic auspices.

The Hassidic Rabbis as a general rule believe that an injection delivered into a cows stomach through the stomach walls renders the cow a treipha who's milk may not be drunk.

Most non-hassidic Rabbis disagree. Rabbi Belsky took exceptional offense to this idea. He said they were paskening with a hava amina (first thought) in the gemara instead of the maskana (final ruling).

As you may have guessed by now, the claim is that those hormones effect the milk and give it a longer shelf life.

[I'm not sure about the current law but supposedly it was illegal for a company to advertise that their milk was produced without growth hormones for fear of causing undo concerns amongst the consumers. Some chalav yisroel milk companies were allowed to advertise this fact being that it is a religious exemption.]

I personally have found a difference in different companies. I won't name the ones that seem to spoil faster, but I will say that I have been pleased with Fresh and Tasty.