Go For Greek!

If you're a yogurt consumer, I'm sure you've noticed the changes in your store's dairy department lately.   There's a new yogurt in town, and everyone is talking about it....Greek!

For consumers, greek yogurt is known for its high protein content, often twice that of regular yogurt.  For dairy producers, greek yogurt is known as the latest product that requires large amounts of milk...yeah, we're good with that!  Fluid milk consumption may be down, but greek yogurt consumption is up.

I do enjoy greek yogurt.  I find that it fills me up, without having to eat anything else.  It's often creamier than traditional yogurt, and the new flavors taste great.

However, just like anything else, not all greek yogurt is created equally.  The companies making the yogurt are constantly trying to find what varieties will easily part you with your money.  Some have lower calories, some have higher protein, some have flavors that nature cannot provide.

Its important to me to not compromise quality.  We do our best around here to not consume artificial colors, flavors, or sugars.  And guess what? I've found these things in greek yogurt!

For fun (yes, I do these things for FUN), I did a little comparison on 12 different yogurts found at my local grocer.  Having all the information on a chart makes my decision at the store much easier.  All but 2 of these 12 were on sale for 1.00 each (still pretty high-but the price of milk is up, and when that goes up, so does everything else).  For easy comparison I picked vanilla whenever possible, because vanilla can be flavored naturally, and most brands have a "vanilla" choice.

Here are my findings:

The biggest disappointment here is that Kroger's regular greek yogurt has artificial coloring in it.  Otherwise that would be my top pick, given that it has a whopping 16 grams of protein.  However, since we are trying to avoid those additives, our next best choice would be Stonyfield Organic, which has 13 grams of protein for 140 calories, and you are guaranteed there will no additives, ever.

So what will you choose?  Is saving 20-40 calories worth putting artificials in your body?  Don't let this deter you from purchasing a very healthy, tasty, and filling meal or snack.  Just remember to always check your labels, even on products you've been buying for a long time.  Every time you make a purchase, you cast a vote for the next type of product companies will create. Vote for Real. Vote for Healthy.  Vote for Greek! (Okay, so that last one was to encourage milk sales....I can't help it!).

-Terri