The slogan says “Have a Coke and a smile” — but Coca-Cola milk is prompting frowns from nutritionists.
Dietitians say Coca-Cola’s buzzy entry into the lactic market — a supermilk called Fairlife — is mooving in the wrong direction.
“Milk is already a great package of nutrients; I’m not quite sure why it needs to be changed,” says registered dietitian Keri Gans.
The dairy drink, now rolling out nationwide, has 50% more protein, 30% more calcium, and 50% less sugar — but numbers tell only part of the story.
“When you really look at the numbers, it can sound appealing, but in general most Americans are already getting enough protein,” said nutritionist Alissa Rumsey, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
If you need more, eat an egg or a handful of almonds, Rumsey added. And people who need more calcium should up their intake of dark leafy greens, not the so-called Frankenmilk.
And experts were not sweet on the notion of a low-sugar milk. Natural milk is filled with wholesome lactose, not processed sugars.
“I never looked at the sugar in milk as a problem,” said Gans, author of “The Small Change Diet.”
Fairlife’s filtering process ditches the lactose in favor of an enzyme that converts it into simple sugar.
It’s clear why Coke is trying to get into the milk business: More and more Americans are turning away from sugary soft drinks, and soda sales fell to a 19-year-low in 2013.
The company is unabashed about its goal of making milk the new beverage mainstay.
Fairlife is “basically the premiumization of milk,» Coca-Cola North America President Sandy Douglas said last year when the product was introduced.
She told industry insiders that Fairlife would «rain money» for investors.
Source: Daily News
