(no subject)
It could be a mixture of inflation or the new product packaging, but the price of Jolie's milk has increased by about a dollar for a 700g refill.
from this... to this
and there's also this
The version in green packaging is much cheaper but is only sold at selected provision shops. It costs less as it's made in Malaysia but the price difference is quite significant (more than $2), so when I see it, I'll usually get it, even if there's still enough milk powder at home.
I suppose the packaging overhaul was overdue as the first design had been around since Josh's birth. He drank Dugro too, up to the age of 10 (the 6 & above Growing Up Milk is for kids up to that age). Dupro is for babies up to a year old, and both of them consumed that too. I've never had them try other brands; it's just been Dugro all the way.
Back then, a refill cost only around $7, so imagine how the price has escalated since. It now costs $11.80, up from the $10.40 which was scarcely six months ago.
Since I expect Jolie to also be consuming Dugro up to the age of 10, it's going to be 5 years more of monitoring the price... Fortunately, she takes the recommended 2 feeds a day and not more, or we'd be seriously broke!
Here's why mums love Dugro...
I'm not surprised that in almost half of the accounts, the mothers themselves drank the same milk when they were growing up. Me too, and that's why it was only natural that Josh and Jolie followed suit. Back then, it went simply by the name of the company, DUMEX. I still remember the retro red/white tin with a beaming little boy on the front. But those days, the milk powder didn't dissolve too well, and the curds at the bottom were disgusting. Now when I prepare Jols' milk, I'm pleased there are only traces at the bottom after stirring.
Sometimes I wonder if giving the kids carton milk would be cheaper, but being the typical kiasu parent, I've opted for formula instead since I think it's more specific and nutritious (after all, carton milk is consumed by adults whose nutritional requirements are lower). I don't know if I can attribute their sturdy sizes, good height and infrequency of falling sick directly to their consumption of milk, but it's definitely not turned them into whizz kids, even though it claims to contain "Maxi-Q", which has DHA and Omega 3 & 6 for brain development.
I wonder if my sis will give her baby Dupro then Dugro too. Dumex has a premium formula called Mamil Gold, but there are no refills for that. Milk powder for kids is really expensive these days; a 1.2kg tin for most brands usually costs more than $20. Sure, parents are spoilt for choice with so many brands, but most of them are the aforementioned better ones that cost more. Apart from Dugro, the more economical ones that have refills include Nestle, Fernleaf, Nespray and Fernleaf, but I've done my calculations and Dugro has always been the cheapest of the lot (though with the latest hike, I'm not sure any more).
So cheaper milk brands are a godsend for cash-strapped folks like us who still want to feed our kids formula. Generally, the older the child, the cheaper the milk gets. Fernleaf Family Milk, which Josh drinks now, only costs about $8 for a refill pack. He still loves his milk but had outgrown Dugro... but neither did I want to break the bank. Fernleaf seemed the most economical of the lot and I also considered if it was easily available (Dugro is sometimes sold out, which gets frustrating). What had me sold was the "Specially formulated for Singapore" on the packaging. Can't say he prefers this to his Milo Fuze 3-in-1 though. In fact, ever since I introduced Milo to their diets, Josh and Jolie seem to like it better than their milk. Alas for them, I won't be striking that off any time soon even though Milo does contain milk.
Interestingly, there's the new Milo Fuze that contains High Calcium Milk. Rick accidentally bought this instead of the regular Fuze and I wonder if the kids will like it. The reason why I didn't choose this over the Fuze is because there are less sachets (15 instead of 18) and costs more.
From Wikipedia, I discovered that the Milo beverage of milk, malt and cocoa was originally invented back in 1934 by an Australian, and Singapore has been producing its own version since 1984. In the 1940s, it was labelled as a "fortified tonic food" (the Milo today is stated as a "tonic food drink" and the word "tonic" has a trademark on it).
Also, Malaysia has apparently the largest share of Milo consumers in the world. Anyway, I bought a six-pack when I was in KL; and guess what... it tasted different, sweeter and more dense. In fact, I didn't like it much...
But I'm seriously quite amazed that Milo is available all over the world. I'd always thought it was mostly a M'sia/Singapore thing.