Home > Categories > Beverages > Milk Drinks > Anchor Triple Layer Lightproof Blue Top review
Light damages milk, and independant studies have shown it. Like that published in the Journal of Dairy Science which has shown milk can start to lose vitamin A in as little as 2 hours of continuous light exposure, and research supported by Cornell University which has shown that light exposure can degrade vitamins B2 and A in milk too.
Both of which are essential, vitamin A supporting healthy eyesight and our immune system, and vitamin B2 helping the body convert food in to fuel, providing energy when we get tired and run down.
So while all milk is good for you only Anchor's Light Proof bottle guarantees to protect milk's essential vitamins from light damage for the whole life of the milk.
Product reviews...
Whether the fancy light-proof bottle works to prevent damage to the milk or not is up for debate but, as a consumer, I can only go by experience in buying it and using it. Let's be honest - it is not a cheap option, but I was tempted by the possibility it could be a tastier milk to drink. I can only imagine the "fancy" bottle contributes somewhat to its cost as well but I am not sure as to how much.
Sadly, I found no comparable difference in taste at all and other family members all stated the same. To me, it tasted just like "normal" milk that one normally purchases from the supermarket but at an obviously far higher price point. Based solely upon this I have had to give it a fairly low score for effectiveness and value for money. To be honest, our milk sits in a refrigerator most of the time anyway and it lasts only a few days at most before being consumed, so how much light damage could there really be except in transit or in the supermarket?
My conclusion is, therefore, that this product is more marketing hype and less of a tastier or more wholesome alternative to other plain milk products available. When the far higher price point is considered then it is extremely doubtful this would find its way into my shopping trolley again in a hurry.
Right. When this product first came out - I - like many others, reacted to it with disbelief and wondered what the heck Anchor were thinking. Light proof bottles? Surely this is just another marketing trick to make the bottles look flash and trick people. I'm sure many people reacted this way - I know a lot of people I know and worked with at the time did. Then Fonterra actually came into my workplace at the time (Foodstuffs North Island) and set up a stand - we were able to try the milk by itself, compare it to others or try it in a smoothie.
I was blown away. This milk DOES taste better. The light proof bottle does work, it seemed far-fetched but it works! The packaging is smart, easy to hold with a decent sized handle that makes for easy pouring. Anchor is always going to be a leading brand, and they've actually got something here that is amazing.
Although I am impressed with this product I personally don't mind a lesser tasting milk and will stick to the cheaper brands. Nevertheless I highly recommend this product to anyone who loves milk, and hasn't yet tried this amazing range - the bottle isn't just for show and it DOES make a difference.
I'm a convert. I was sceptical to begin with but my husband had heard good things about the new bottles from his colleagues at work so suggested that we try it.
The taste itself may not be all that different from non light proof bottles, so much so that it wouldn't be a big selling point to me. However a side effect that we have discovered is that the milk lasts a whole lot longer in them, much to my horror we were drinking milk out of a bottle that was 10 days out of date, yet there was no sour taste that usually comes with milk just over it's use by date. It also doesn't seem to pick up the fatty taste that can come with the milk warming up then being chilled again such as it does in some locations when it doesn't get put into the fridge promptly.
I love that we can get it in 3L bottles and usually buy 2 or 3 a week in our regular shopping and when we have to buy the 2L bottles I find they just don't seem to last as long even though we don't use any more! The bottle itself is comfortable to hold and pour from, especially when it is full, some of the other bottles can be a lot more awkward when you are pouring a full 3L bottle.
As for not being able to see how much milk is left in the bottle, it was an issue to start with but now it is second nature to lift it and know how much is left in there by weight and often I don't even need to do that because I know how much we tend to use anyway so have a clear idea of how much is left.
I would recommend the light proof bottles to anyone that doesn't go through milk quickly and is often throwing out the last quarter of a bottle because it's gone off. As for those who do go through it quickly I would also recommend them, overall the theory behind them seems to work very well in practise.
With all the advertising done on how much better this light proof bottle would be I was considering trying some. I had a look at the prices and thought well I'm on a very tight budget so not happy about having to pay that much more for milk. I didn't buy some but a few days later there was someone doing a demo and giving a free taste so I thought I would give it a go and if there is enough of a difference/improvement in taste I would consider it.
I could taste that the milk tasted just like milk, there was a slight difference but not enough that would buy a bottle. The other thing is that you can't see through the bottle and see exactly how much milk is left, with three kids who love milk I would have to keep an extra bottle in the fridge so that we don't run out.
After tasting it and thinking about cost and bottle design I am keeping to the budget brand milk as there is not much difference in taste but there is a huge difference in price.
Some of the playgroups I go to use the light proof bottle as it sits on the bench for a while and there is honestly no real difference in taste, even my son who drinks milk like it is water can't tell if it is budget milk or anchor light proof milk.
With all the fonterra scandal regarding infant formula in the last week we have made the decision to switch our son from formula to cows milk. He is old enough now anyway and the whole thing has just been really scary. We don't drink blue top milk but had to get blue for Cai while he is under two. I found myself in the milk aisle at the supermarket and the consumer in me told me that this Anchor brand milk would be better quality for him than the standard Homebrand milk.
Coming in at 1.68 more expensive than the Homebrand milk you would really think you were getting something extra for your money, so what exactly is that? I think being that it is Anchor the consumer in me told me it would be better quality and better milk I felt bad about stopping formula so wanted to know my son was getting the milk that would be best for him.
The milk itself tastes to me no different at all, it just tastes like well milk really!! I would say that if there is any difference in taste it would be really miniscule and the average person really wouldn't be able to tell the difference between this milk and another brand. And then there is the annoying bottle you can't see through it at all making it really difficult to see just how much milk is left!
With some bottles you can sort of tilt the bottle from side to side to get an estimate of how much is left but even doing that with this is still quite hard to tell because the bottle is quite thick. All in all I hated the bottle and didn't really see what the whole deal with lightproofing was about, milk has come in transparent bottles for as long as I can remember and it has never bothered me or anyone else before.
I have come to the decision that once this bottle runs out I will just be buying the normal homebrand milk saving myself money and also being able to see when my milk is running out. Don't hold me to it as I haven't compared nutritional information but i'm sure they will get just as much nutrients from any other milk than this anyway. A true example of when consumerism hasn't 'completely' got the better of me :)
Random listing from 'Beverages'...
Hemp seeds are incredibly nutritious, rich in Omega 3 & 6 and contain high levels of antioxidants, minerals and vitamins. They also protect the brain, boost heart health, reduce inflammation and improve skin conditions.
Pairing that with local Nelson Honey's Manuka Honey - which has its own health benefits and is the sweetener.
All trademarks, images and copyrights on this site are owned by their respective companies.
KIWIreviews is an independent entity, part of the Knock Out News Group. This is a free public forum presenting user opinions on selected products, and as such the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinion of kiwireviews.nz and are protected under New Zealand law by the "Honest Opinion" clause of the Defamation Act of 1992. KIWIreviews accepts no liability for statements made on this site, on the premise that they have been submitted as the true and honest opinions of the individual posters. In most cases, prices and dates stated are approximate and should be considered as only guidelines.
"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
Albert Einstein