I've been fascinated by the fact that dairy products aren't refrigerated here. This photo shows milk and eggs on a regular shelf at the grocery. I took this photo in mid-October and this milk expires on Jan 14, 2010. It's good for 3 months! We could still be drinking this same stuff next year.
Turns out it's the ultra high temperature (UHT) pasteurization process used so it doesn't need refrigeration. We put ours in the 'frig once home, but I'm not sure if it has to be or not. This is apparently popular in European countries, but according to the internet, Americans haven't been accepting of milk that's not refrigerated so the high temperature/short time (HTST) method is still used and milk is still transported in refrigerated trucks.
It tastes just the same as milk in the States and it really does last 3 months. When I got to Belgium, Jim had some milk he'd bought in July and it was still good up to the expiration date in October.
Pasteur actually conceived this process not for milk, but for beer and wine. Thanks, Louis.
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