Woolworths Greek style yoghurt review
Here we will give a hands-on, taste-tested review of Woolworths Greek style yoghurt. We’ll look into the benefits, ingredients, nutrition and flavour of this great value Greek style yoghurt.
This yoghurt is widely available in Woolworths supermarkets in Australia.
Ingredients of Woolworths Greek style yoghurt
This yoghurt contains milk, cream, skim milk powder and live cultures.
Because it contains milk powder it isn’t a truly authentic Greek style yoghurt. I wonder if this is how Woolworths keeps the cost of this yoghurt so low...
Apart from this, the yoghurt doesn’t contain anything questionable - there’s no additives like thickeners, sweeteners or flavourings.
Benefits of Woolworths Greek style yoghurt
This yoghurt comes with various health benefits. For context, we’ll compare a few key factors against Coles pot set natural Greek style yoghurt, Jalna Greek style pot set yoghurt and Farmers Union Greek style yoghurt - which are similar, natural yoghurts.
Probiotics
This yoghurt contains four probiotics (ie live beneficial microbes) - S. thermophilus, L. acidophilus, Bifidobacterium, L. casei.
This is quite impressive for a cheaper Greek style yoghurt as it beats Jalna (three strains) and Farmers Union (two strains). And Coles doesn’t give any information about the strains included
In terms of the amount of actual bacteria present (ie colony forming units), there are a minimum of 100 million CFU per 100g. However, this is much below that of Coles and Jalna which have over 1 billion CFU per 100g.
Read more about the benefits of probiotic foods.
Postbiotics
Postbiotics are essentially things probiotics produce during fermentation. These include healthy short-chain fatty acids which nourish our gut lining and may help reduce symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome.
Other health measures
Fat: This yoghurt has fairly high fat levels at 7.6% - however this is lower than Coles (8.6%), Jalna (9.5%) and Farmers Union (9.4%).
Protein: Its protein content is fairly good at 5% - which is more than Coles (3.4%), Jalna (3.3%) and Farmers Union (4.2%). However this is below other protein-rich brands like Procal and Chobani.
Calcium: Its calcium content is high at 189mg per 100g. This is significantly higher than Coles (118mg), Jalna (107mg) and Farmers Union (162mg).
Sodium: It has more sodium than Coles and Jalna, and the same level as Farmers Union. However, the sodium levels of all these brands are still considered low.
Appearance
It appears more runny than others as it settles more evenly to the bottom of the bowl.
Texture
The texture is fairly thick and with an even creamy consistency.
Flavour
The aroma is like soured milk with mild cheesey notes.
The taste is moderately sour with those slight cheese vibes coming through. There’s something a little bland and underwhelming about the taste though.
Overall, the taste is not bad at all, but it is lacking something.
Cost of Woolworths Greek style yoghurt
The normal retail price for a 1kg tub from Woolworths is $4.20. This means it is coming in at nearly half the price of some competitors!
Summary
4 stars out of 5.
A great value, natural yoghurt with good levels of protein and calcium. The flavour won’t blow you away though and it does use some milk powders.
Pros
great value
nice, creamy texture
good levels of protein and calcium
four strains of probiotics
Cons
uses milk powder (along with real milk and cream)
somewhat underwhelming taste - but not a bad taste
lower amount of actual live cultures (ie colony forming units) than other brands
Health benefits of yoghurt
Aside from the specific benefits listed above, especially related to probiotics and postbiotics, yoghurt has some other important health benefits.
Vitamins and minerals
Yoghurt is a source of various vitamins and minerals including:
calcium - which helps digestion and supports bone and teeth health
magnesium - which supports bone health, muscle function and energy production
phosphorus - which is important for bone and teeth health and energy metabolism
potassium - which supports heart, muscle, nerve and kidney health
vitamins B2 and B12 - which support immunity, energy production and cell and nerve function
vitamin A - supports vision, immune function, cell growth and healthy skin
Satiety and weight management
The high protein and low carbohydrate content in yogurt, especially Greek style yogurt, helps you feel fuller for longer which can help control your appetite. Greek yoghurt is often recommended by dietitians for this reason.
Reduced lactose
Compared to unfermented dairy products such as milk, yoghurt has lower levels of lactose as this is partially consumed by bacteria during the fermentation process. This makes it more digestible for people who have some degree of lactose intolerance.
Your reviewer
This article was reviewed by Travis, the founder of this website, long-time gut enthusiast and passionate kombucha maker!
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