What is
the Cost Breakdown?
Is homemade yogurt economical enough for your time? I think
that the answer is a huge, resounding YES! For large families,
individuals, and especially for those who have a milk source, such as a dairy
cow, making your own yogurt can be a significant cost-saver especially if you
eat it on a daily basis.
So here's the breakdown:
So here's the breakdown:
For a good quality, natural, organic yogurt from the store you
will be spending a minimum of $4.99 for 4 cups (or 3.5 servings). If you
have a taste for Greek style, go ahead and up that cost to $5.99.
In order to make your own yogurt equal in quality your initial cost will include:
In order to make your own yogurt equal in quality your initial cost will include:
Cost of yogurt starter. This could be either a large 4 cup container of the high quality yogurt, or a single serving cup, because all you need is 2-3 tbsp. This could be anywhere from $1.50 to the $5.99.
1/2 gallon of good quality milk. If you own a dairy cow, or
have access to free, quality milk you can eliminate this from your initial cost
(and recurring costs for that matter.) If not, your local grocer should
have organic milk available at a very reasonable cost. $2.99 is what I
spent on Horizon Organic Vitamin D milk. You can often find that milk
close to it's "sell-by" date at a reduced rate. Safeway, for
instance, reduces their milk by 50%. Even though it is close to the end
of it's shelf life, this doesn't normally affect yogurt making because nearly
sour milk has a greater concentration of bacteria. The heating process
kills off many of those anyway, as well as the yeast that begins to grow when
milk starts to spoil, so you are left with the same essential starting point.
So if you're fortunate, you could end up with 1/2 gallon of excellent
quality organic milk for as little as $1.50.
*Quick note: why go organic? As I am learning more about the food industry, I realize that most of the products that we consume daily have preservatives, hormones, and antibiotics in them. Milk is no exception as the majority of dairy farmers must use antibiotics and hormones for their cows to keep them healthy enough to keep up with the demand for their milk. The long-term effects of hormones and antibiotics are frightful. Research is showing that the hormones used to stimulate milk production in cows results in a need for them to receive greater doses of antibiotics. Both of these products pass into cow's milk and have been shown to cause cell growth in humans. The particular cells that multiply are often the cells that cause cancer. This is why you will often hear physicians recommend that cancer patients avoid milk. While organic milk is not essential, after the initial cost of the first batch, using organic milk is just as economical as using regular milk.*
If you do not have a heating pad already, you might want to invest in one. This is the easiest way that I have found to make yogurt. Just make sure that it does not have an auto shutoff feature. But again, this is not an essential tool for yogurt making. You can use a crock-pot, range top, or even an oven. You will need to test these methods in your own kitchen because times and temperatures depend on your altitude and your kitchen environment. Of course, you could splurge on a yogurt machine. They can be pricey, so I opted to use what I already had at home and reduce my starting costs.
All of the other tools for yogurt making should already be in your kitchen.
One of the points of making your own yogurt is to minimize overall costs. Don't go out and buy anything unless you have another use for it. If you have to "set yourself up", it might not be worth it especially if you don't eat or use yogurt often enough to make the supplies worthwhile.
*Quick note: why go organic? As I am learning more about the food industry, I realize that most of the products that we consume daily have preservatives, hormones, and antibiotics in them. Milk is no exception as the majority of dairy farmers must use antibiotics and hormones for their cows to keep them healthy enough to keep up with the demand for their milk. The long-term effects of hormones and antibiotics are frightful. Research is showing that the hormones used to stimulate milk production in cows results in a need for them to receive greater doses of antibiotics. Both of these products pass into cow's milk and have been shown to cause cell growth in humans. The particular cells that multiply are often the cells that cause cancer. This is why you will often hear physicians recommend that cancer patients avoid milk. While organic milk is not essential, after the initial cost of the first batch, using organic milk is just as economical as using regular milk.*
If you do not have a heating pad already, you might want to invest in one. This is the easiest way that I have found to make yogurt. Just make sure that it does not have an auto shutoff feature. But again, this is not an essential tool for yogurt making. You can use a crock-pot, range top, or even an oven. You will need to test these methods in your own kitchen because times and temperatures depend on your altitude and your kitchen environment. Of course, you could splurge on a yogurt machine. They can be pricey, so I opted to use what I already had at home and reduce my starting costs.
All of the other tools for yogurt making should already be in your kitchen.
One of the points of making your own yogurt is to minimize overall costs. Don't go out and buy anything unless you have another use for it. If you have to "set yourself up", it might not be worth it especially if you don't eat or use yogurt often enough to make the supplies worthwhile.
After the initial batch of yogurt (when you buy a container of
plain yogurt as a starter) your cost to make regular yogurt is:
Starter: $0
Milk: $0-$2.99
Yeild: 8-16 servings
$0.37 to
$0.19 per serving
Compare this to $1.25 per serving for store bought yogurt.
For Greek style yogurt:
Starter: $0
Milk: $0-$2.99
Yeild: 4-8 servings
$0.75 to
$0.37 per serving
Compare this to $1.50 per serving for store bought yogurt.
No comments:
Post a Comment