Interesting question. I switched to almond milk over a year ago myself. But as for your mystery, here's all I could find. I don't know if any of it is helpful.

Rocket fuel found in milk in California
Not clear if amount imperils children

A toxic chemical in rocket fuel has been detected in California's milk supply, although environmentalists and toxicologists disagree over whether the levels are high enough to pose a health threat to infants and young children.

Tests by the California Department of Food and Agriculture found perchlorate, a rocket fuel component widely used by the defense industry, in 32 samples of milk taken from Alameda, San Joaquin and Sacramento counties, according to a report released today by an environmental watchdog group.

...

"A major source of perchlorate for California is the Colorado River," Walker said.

source

Melamine has also been purposely added as a binder to fish and livestock feed manufactured in the United States and traced to suppliers in Ohio and Colorado.[35]

For what it's worth, the milk here in Florida still tastes fine. My friends who have their own cow say that the flavor of milk varies depending on what the cows have been eating, but big milk producers mix huge batches together so no one notices the variation. Unfortunately, in our world of factory farming, I'd be paranoid enough to suspect something less harmless than a little garlic amongst the fodder.

I don't know that I've noticed a different taste, I don't drink milk as much as I used to either. Being that I haven't been getting regular sleep lately, I assume that the milk has gone bad if it tastes bad, without really looking into it. I have to say, that being said, that I've been having some trouble with milk going bad before the expiration lately. Being that my son drinks a lot of milk I'd be interested to know what you find out, if you find out anything. Things I would think of is possibly the use of different materials to make the containers (for example a good percentage of the melomine found in many foods is actually from the packaging). Also possibly a different diet for the cows. It sounds industry wide.

This happened to me the first time this week! I usually buy Horizon organic, but will pick up the other organic brand if it's on sale.

It was watery and did have a nasty ricey taste and a horrible aftertaste right from the get-go. The kids assumed it had gone bad too.

First, they came for the real tomatoes, but I wasn't a tomato lover, so I said nothing...

Noooooo, not the milk!!!!!!

Tim - Do you happen to have a farmers market near you? They sometimes have higher quality dairy products there, since they're often on a first name basis with their cows. They tend to fill niche markets and cater to those following various health trends. And they would also be most likely to have some insight into your quandry.

I have a gallon (in plastic) of Horizon 1% and it tastes good. I just bought a half gallon of skim and it tastes horrible. It has that weird chemical "rice" taste that people mentioned.

I've had Horizon milk before that had the "green onion" taste. That was tolerable, but this new taste is just too overwhelming and terrible. It tastes like spoiled rice or something.

I bought two half gallons and just opened the other one. Sure enough, it has the horrible smell. I didn't bother tasting it.

I'm taking them back. (Kroger, Ohio)

I have noticed this for the past maybe 4 months or so. It started out being every two or three containers of milk I would buy and now it is almost every time. I just purchased one yesterday after taking a break for a while and it tasted horrible. I'm really glad I found this post, because I was starting to feel really crazy! I have no idea what this could be. I'm not taking any medications that would cause a change in tastebuds either. I'm in California.

Just for the record, we've been able to find decent-tasting milk again here in Denver. Seems to come and go. My current concern is that it might be indicative of something unhealthy getting into the mix.

I live in Denver too -- and cannot seem to get good milk. I usually buy Horizon and sometimes Whole foods 365 brand. It frequently tastes strange - or spoiled when I open the cartons. I was wondering about the carton material because the last two times I got Horizon the carton was leaking on the bottom and the strength of the actual carton seems weaker. Hmmm. I'm thinking of going back to Royal Crest.

I live in NY city and I've had the same problem with the milk tasting horrible. I would say it has been for the last two years. Can't say how many gallons of milk I had to pour down the drain. Finally I stayed away from plastic containers and only buy milk in cartons. I can now drink milk again. I don't understand how this milk is being sold and consumed when it taste so bad. I asked my son to pick up milk for me yesterday and YES he brought me a plastic container of milk. I thought it may have changed after two years and tried it...it was absolutely disgusting! This is what prompted me to check the internet and see if anyone else was having a problem with milk tasting awful.

I don't understand how this milk is being sold and consumed when it taste so bad

Yes, that was our reaction too, exactly. I also decided to check the Internet, and noticed only a few small notes about the problem, yet it seemed to be (from our samples of other stores) fairly widespread. So I thought I'd put this out there to see if others were encountering the same thing. Apparently, quite a few are.

Ive tasted this taste you all have encountered. I have stayed with the same HyVee brand and its always a hit and miss. Lately ive bought good milk but the last two gallons bought were both unbearable. Both went down the drain. Thats also a horrible feeling. I dont think its brand specific or area specific. I live in South Dakota and LOVE milk but cant drink the bad stuff. I thought it was hormones but its probably what these milk cows are eating or how the milk is treated in the process along the line somewhere.Wishing for an answer.

My wife and I just experienced this for the first time here in upstate SC. We just made the switch to organic and bought a half gallon of Horizon 2%. The first carton we used entirely for cooking, and did not notice a problem. But then we bought a second caron and my wife poured it over cereal. It was the worst thing I have ever tasted. Like some nightmare medicine that leaves a bad aftertaste. Expiration date has plenty of time, and we just opened it. We are taking it back and trying something else!

OMG! This has all the hallmarks of a conspiracy. I am truly frightened. Only yesterday I bought a gallon of 2% from Target, not my usual source for milk. As I usually do, I mixed in a generous amount of Hershey's chocolate syrup. The milk had a powerful "soapy" chemical taste. I thought perhaps my dishwasher had malfunctioned and left my plastic cup soapy. I tired a new clean glass. Even without the chocoalte syrup, it was still powerfully soapy. Something ain't right here. I'm never buying Target milk again. I usually buy Dean's or my local grocery store (Kohl's) brand, and have never had this problem.
I googled "bad taste milk from target" and found the "Random Observations" blog. To me, this is clearly a soapy taste, not "ricey" like others report. But Whiskey-Tango-Foxtrot? In the days of weekly Salmonella outbreaks, Mexican Flu, terrorist biothreats, a completely open border, and a completely corrupt and incompetent Government, we need to remain vigilant about exactly this sort of thing. I am glad to see you all here, reporting this. Now I don't feel so alone, but I still feel unsure about my food supply. I'm writing to Target, at least to get my money back.

FYI, found this page on milk flavor factors. Doesn't mention the "ricey" taste specifically, but does mention that rancid milk will taste "soapy" and astringent. http://www.farminfo.org/dairy/flavor-m.htm

Also, there is another thread I found in which others have experienced the same thing. http://community.tasteofhome.com/forums/t/690251.aspx One poster theorizes this might be oxidation from clear containers.

I am still concerned/annoyed enough about this that I searched out and found a dairy forum online. I've posed the question to them and linked them here. Hopefully we'll get some response!

I just returned from a school at Lackland Air Force Base and the 2% milk there tasted better than any whole milk I have had in years. It had a perfect taste. I have missed this for a long time. I thought my sense of taste had changed. The problem is the milk we get. I need to know the low down on that milk.

I just poured a bowl of cereal with Organic Valley Skim Milk and spit my first bite out in the sink. I then smelled the milk .. not sour, but there was a definite chemical-like odor. Tasted the same way it smelled. Looks like the mystery milk has made it's way to Brooklyn too.

We live in Savannah, Georgia and have noticed the milk starting to taste sour this summer. We thought it might be a bad batch, or a particular supplier. We tried it from several different stores. The bad taste is common to all our local store brands and the high end labels too. My kids don't want to drink it most of the time, and I don't push it. We're going to try organic next. It's very frustrating, and a little scary. I hate to think of what might be causing it. Please keep posting what you learn about this topic. Bad milk is just un-American!

Glad to have found this thread - I was beginning to think it was just me. Live in Rocaway Beach, NY and summer home in Saratoga Springs, NY - - the milk in both cities has been tasting rotten for the past 7 - 8 months. Not sour, but tastes like it had been heated and then re-chilled. Been buying from different stores, different brands, all varieties, all types of packaging. The only good-tasting milk I've purchased lately was Stewart's brand (Saratoga) in the cardboard half-gallon container. What's going on? Is the milk not being kept cold enough? The fact that this problem is so widespread is bad news. Hopefully the dairy industry will take notice and make corrections, or at least let us know what is causing this situation, and if we should expect it to continue.

This happened to me a week or so ago. I bought a gallon of Horizon Organic whole milk, and it tasted so badly of plastic that I brought it back to the store. The replacement gallon was fine.
Then I switched to Safeway Organic milk (2%) which was also fine. The next gallon of Safeway Organic 2% milk has that nasty plastic taste this time.
I'm in Maryland, just outside of DC. I hope someone figures this out, since we're spending almost $6 a gallon on milk that tastes gross.

We live in ND and have been noticing the same problem for the last couple of years. We have tried Target organic, Horizon, Organic Valley and some non organic brands. Seems to come and go. The last last 2 gals we bought we Organic Valley. The first one was fine the next one tasted like a band-aid. It had a very strong chemical odor and taste. The milk was from different batches with diff exp dates. I think I am giving up on milk for now.

I started noticing this first about a year or year and one half ago. First noticed it in Horizon organic then other brands. Regular milk does not seem to be effected like the organics. Also noticed the ultra-pasteurized is much worse. Compare for example the Horizon brand organic ultra-pasteurized vs regular pasteurized and you will notice the taste is only in the ultra. The taste and/or odor is not normal. Some say chemical or plastic some describe it as band aid taste or bitterness. It is hard to place but it is there. Something is definitely wrong and the milk producers are hiding it. I have contacted several companies and though they act concerned they have no answers. The origination of this taste must be in the packaging, processing, or care of the animals and should be easy to isolate. The main culprit as stated above seems to be ultra-pasteurized. UHT processed milk is treated at a higher heat for a shorter time period. Higher heat of course denatures the proteins to a greater extent. Also heat will bring out volatile compounds and change the flavor other constituents such as the fatty acids. So it could be as simple as overheated milk with a different flavor.
One last thought. Brettanomyces is a genus of yeast that produces 4-ethyl phenol. a compound that produces the exact flavor of Band aids. It is common in red wines. It has also been isolated in milks and cheeses and is prevalent in silage. So it could be the flavor from feed or from yeast in the stored milk prior to pasteurization.
Anyway, it may be a by product of the current production processes or it could indeed be a conspiracy.

I've tasted this since 2008 in Target brand milk, but not milk from the grocery store. The milk I got this week doesn't expire for another two weeks, and it is less than 2 miles from Target to my home, so it didn't go bad in the car.
I tried cooking with it, but I ended up throwing it out.

I've tasted this flavor all my life in Ohio supermarket skim milk: Acme, Giant Eagle, IGA, Great Value, Fishers etc. For this reason I only drank 1% or 2%. The "chemical-past-milk" flavor was masked somewhat in the higher fat content milk, until recently. The last couple Acme 2% gallons that I have purchased had the taste. It is scary to think about what may have changed in our milk.

Also, who knows what our milk will taste like if the dairy processors get their way regarding MPCs. The following URL is a story on that subject.
http://www.ethicurean.com/2009/03/10/mpcs/

I thought I was going crazy as well. So glad I found this site I love milk...er loved milk but can not drink it anymore I have tried every brand from every store here and all have a "nutty" or spoiled taste. Cant put my finger on it but its not the milk I grew up on. I would pay double for my milk if it would just taste right. I read that link about the price of milk so low its driving farmers out of the business, maybe this is a way the dairy farmers can increase the profits or maybe its a plan to get people to pay more for higher quality milk which I will do now. Please get me a good milk!

Hi, I also have found Milk with the bad after taste. I've noticed this for at least five years. It is a random thing with me. I'm 53 and still drink a lot of milk, usually 1% or 1/2% if the store has it.(Richmond,Va and now Raleigh,NC) We all love the cold crisp taste of milk, esp with something like cakes ect. When I get one of these awful tasting gallons of milk I return it and exchange for another. I describe it as chalky but I think we're all talking about the same thing. I figured it was too many hormones but someone described about the cleaning of the tank trucks and a new cleaning solutions. That makes sense and enought people haven't complained for the industry to make changes. I think regarding the processing of our foods there are a lot of things we would rather not know about...but can taste this one.. I'm glad I found this page. Regards Drew

Hi, I don't drink milk except in tea or coffee. but my son does & he has complained about the taste lately. I think that either they are not rinsing out the machines properly after they have cleaned them, which would leave cleaning product residue in the batches of milk or the plastic containers or cartons could be the problem. Just about everyone is recycling now & maybe the chemicals used to recycle these materials are leaching out into products. Remember recycling is fairly new & who knows what chemicals are used for this. Look at the baby bottles that were out for years with dangerous chemicals in them & how long it took for them to be recalled. There are also different types of plastic out there (mostly clear) type 1 I think, that can't be reused because chemicals leach out. There should be a triangle on the bottom of plastic containers telling you which # it is. There are too many people complaining about the milk taste for it to be everyone's imagination. Someone needs to get to the bottom of this before people get sick from who knows what.This bad taste will result in less people buying milk, sales will go down, do they really want that?

I won't buy milk in plastic jugs. I think the foul taste may come from a "mould release" agent (helps get the parts of the jug out of the mould). It is certainly not a normal milk flavor. I love the milk I get in the paper cartons.

The other link says it's because of "oxidation" from light. Any truth to this?

If the problem was oxidation, I'd think that it might have a similar taste to powdered milk. Does it?

I only notice that horrible after taste in the milk packaged in plastic. I don't notice it in cartons.

The problem wouldn't be hormone or antibiotics. FYI milk and dairy products are the most highly regulated foods and there is an insane amount of testing done on the milk from the farm all the way to your table. You would all be surprised. However, what a cow eats plays a huge role in how the milk tastes and also what season it is afffects the milk as well. MIlk will taste different from region to region and form farm to farm just because thats the way it is. THe flavor everyone is describing is likely oxidation of the milk. Milk is exremely susceptible to oxidation and becase it is stored in translucent bottles or jugs for the most part in a lighted dairy case at the grocery store this can cause oxidation. Also temperature fluctuations of taking it out of the friding, riding aroudn in your cart at the store, etc can cause the flavor to change. THe taste of powdered milk is not from oxidation it is from the high heat treatment that the milk undergoes to get dried, similar to how UHT or shelf stable fluid milk tastes.

Reread the above - the first paragraph was badly written. To rephrase; You're right that fat oxidation can cause bad flavors. This happens even in skim milk, since small amouts of fat can remain in skim milk, and the bad-tasting chemicals have an effect even in parts per million.

(Light may be one source of oxidation/bad taste, but others are addressed in the linked article.)

We just looked this up after having noticed the awful taste in store-bought milk yet again in the new container I just purchased. We're in PA- I just threw out the last milk I purchased, wondering what was wrong with it. Luckily, we can still purchase raw milk here, and that is what we had been doing for a while. Boy is it delicious!!! We thought maybe we were just used to the really good milk, but have ruled that out since we had occasionally purchased store milk when we would run out of the real stuff. Even the powdered milk I have for "emergencies" is better than this stuff!!! I would love answers! For now, no more store milk.

I buy organic milk in the large plastic cartons at trader joes, and it seems great every time. I've tried Horizon several times when I can't get to Joes, and every time it tastes disgusting.

Yes. I have noticed a rapid decline here in Utah over the last few months. Target has that horrible chemical aftertaste about half or three quarters of the time. Kroger's has it nearly all the time now. Even Kirkland (from Costco) has started selling the garbage. I used to think that I could be safe with Wal-Mart milk. Sadly, it is looking about 50/50 there as well.

The only reliable brand here in Utah is Winder milk. Of course, it costs more per ounce than diamonds (only slight exaggeration), so I cannot switch over to that.

I just sent this message to Tuscan Dairy Farms from here in NYC: "This milk in a paper carton has a strong plastic taste. I have avoided buying milk in plastic containers for years because of the plastic taste. Your brand always had a superior taste, I hope you are not plastic coating the insides of paper cartons now, I won't be able to buy them."

I live in Australia and my brother and I have noticed this strange taste and smell phenomenon for more than 20 years. It sort of tastes off like a very concentrated over the top milky flavour. We only drink full cream regular milk. It only used to happen very occasionally at a particular time of year but we both would not drink it either straight, or in tea or coffee because the flavour was so pronounced. We have discovered over time that it seems to be more common in cheaper brands of milk. Now I will only buy one brand (which is the most expensive) and this brand has only suffered from the taste/smell thing a couple of times. I would rather pay for a reliable source of milk than throw out litre after litre. We heard a theory years ago that it was caused by the cows eating clover. Recently we heard it may have been due to fillers the milk companies add to the milk. I find it interesting that it happens in other countries and seems to be far more common than I had imagined.

I've done a slight amount of searching and found a study on the Journal of Dairy Science (sounds like a lively lot, right?) about the effect of cattle ethanol consumption on milk flavor. (Cows may be ingesting ethanol from fermented feed.) http://jds.fass.org/cgi/content/abstract/82/2/420
"When cows received ethanol...Milk concentrations... of ethanol and acetone increased...The proportion of palmitic acid in milk fat increased... Organoleptic milk quality was reduced because of an increase in milk tainted by feed flavors. The off-flavor could not be attributed solely to the ethanol transmitted to the milk. Precautions should be taken to avoid extensive production of ethanol during fermentation of grass silage and other feeds that are to be fed to dairy cows."

In short, ethanol in feed made the milk taste bad ("the organoleptic quality decreased" - where organoleptic quality means flavor quality)

So here are some of the observations on the bad milk flavor, and then how these correlate with ethanol in feed affecting flavor:
Observed:
1. Random incidents of bad flavor; of 2 milks, even from the same brand made on the same day, one may have the flavor and one may not
2. Varying degrees of bad flavor
3. Higher quality brands having less frequent occurrences of the bad flavor.
Theory:
1. Some cows eat fermented feed, some don't.
2. Some cows eat more fermented feed.
3. Higher quality milk producers are likely to have fresher feed/ higher quality feed for all the cows

Given bad milk flavor has been occurring for the last 20 years (according to some comments here), I think alcohol-eating cows are a reasonable explanation (and hopefully a bit consoling to those worried about their delicious milk). I wouldn't say this is conclusively why your milk is tasting weird, but as they noted minute quantities of rocket fuel in California milk, I think it's more plausible than a nation-wide contamination of some horrible chemical that'll be sterilizing your kids. At the very least, I think this points to something the cows are eating.

Personally, I'm going to try buying whatever the higher quality brands are, as taking that first sip of nasty milk is the bane of my dietary existence at the moment.

A note on acetone(because it sounds like something nasty you wouldn't want in your milk): concentrations were on the order of 0.01 millimole / liter, or on the order of less than 1 ppm - well below noticeable health effects [ingesting 20 grams a day (WAAAAY higher than anything you'd get from milk) caused no health effects in a study]. However breathing acetone vapor concentrations around 250ppm for a few hours can cause some effect... so don't do that.

Wow! I am glad that my family isn't the only one noticing this. We used to live in upstate NY then moved to Wisconsin and now Minnesota, and we thought this icky taste had to do with just the mid-west milk. It IS horrible...especially the skim milk. It has nothing to do with going "bad" as I will buy a brand new gallon and open it and the taste will be just yucky. At first I thought that it might have to do with what the cows were eating (seasonally) but it happens at random times throughout the year. We also have tried all the brands available and it is SO hit or miss. I usually shop at Hyvee or Walmart. I never would have thought that so many people would be worrying about this topic also! I will be sure to show my husband this website, as he is the one who is the most disturbed by it (we are a big milk drinking family). I don't know how many gallons of milk get dumped, but I would recommend that the milk companies figure something out before people stop buying it altogether!! The farmers have enough troubles without these problems adding to it, right??

in the last 2 months or so, the milk i buy tastes fine for a few days...then ICK! before the expiration date, it starts smelling and tasting bad. not exactly sour, but nasty. i've been throwing away half the carton. what happened? i've never had this problem before and i'm a lifetime milk drinker. so far, the only milk that seems to hold up is "swiss". i buy fat free milk, mostly from albersons. however, i've also bought it from ralphs with the same nasty taste. what do we do????

The milk in Mississippi has a bad taste, also we have bought butter from Schnucks that was molding.
The really bad thing is we are feeding this to our children.

Thank heavens I found this. I've been drinking Kroger skim milk for years and not often (thank goodness) but every once in awhile I encounter this phenomenon. Opened a brand new ice cold gallon this morning to eat with my lovely chocolate doughnuts and AAAAAARGGGH! It is not an onion or garlic taste, or a sour or spoiled taste, or a rice taste. I can't describe it. It tastes bad going down and leaves a worse aftertaste. As we would say here in the South, it has a "whang" to it. @:) The post by KG was very interesting. If it is something the cows are ingesting, it's the SAME thing, because the bad taste is always exactly the same. I can't particularly identify it as a plasticky or chemical taste but I'm sure it could also have something to do with the containers or packaging process. Whatever it is, they need to figure it out and find some way to avoid it. Back to Kroger tonight to change out the milk and keeping my fingers crossed that the new gallon won't taste just the same.

I am in St Louis, MO and I am experiencing the same problem I have gone out and bought 4 different brands and they all have that distinctive disgusting taste and smell. I have told others here and they say they haven't noticed thankfully I am not the only one that has noticed. Its strange that the taste is simialr through all these brands everybody has mentioned across the country.

If you can get past the how / why / what, try adding a SMALL amount of vanilla. I used immitation vanilla. Learned this from a powdered milk box abut 35 years ago.

I'm so glad I've found this site. My milk has tasted terrible in the last 2 weeks. I drink Lucerene Lactose free. Tried King Soopers and the same thing. I'm dying for a nice cool glass of milk. HELP!

I have been getting the same thing here in riverside california. I thought it was just the brand, swiss, staters, hi-top and another I dont recall the name..the stores were staters and winco. The hy top I bought was doing great for 6months and in the past 2 weeks the milk is starting to have that funky tatse again. I have been going through this for a couple years now. Someone at the store said, always grab for the milk in the back, rather than the ones up front, due to not be cold enough? I dont know about that. I will try the carton ones and see what happens, may just go powder maybe that will taste better. Has anyone gotten a hold of a dairy and ask them what they think it might be? is it they are putting something new into the milk to enhance something? its seems to be across the US and it doesnt seems to be in every gallon of milk.

YES! I thought I was going crazy! My husband would occasionally buy milk from Walmart. Each time he did, I could taste this terrible taste and was like a borderline sour milk. It's disgusting! I too can smell it as soon as I open the container! I am a HUGE milk drinker and am really wondering what in the world could be causing this! Is this even safe? I won't let him buy milk from Walmart anymore! I am so happy to see other people on here tasting the same thing! I am going to write to Land O Lakes and find out what in the world is going on!

I bought skim milk from Sam's Club a couple days ago. It tastes AWFUL. I'm bringing it back. I had it in Rice Krispies and had to throw the cereal out. What the heck is going on?

I just noticed this yesterday. I bought a gallon jug of milk from Walmart in the DFW area. I made a glass of chocolate milk and ended up dumping it out because it was so disgusting. I thought maybe the dishwasher didn't rinse the soap well enough. Then I tried a drink of it straight from the jug - and I concluded it was the milk. It had a very bad chemical tasting aftertaste. I went to a different grocery store today and bought a new jug of milk. Same thing happened. Whatever it is, I don't like because I LOVE to drink milk!!!

I live in NW Pennsylvania, and for the past few years I have noticed an odd taste in organic skim/nonfat milk ONLY. I usually buy Organic Valley or Horizon and every so often both would have this odd taste--it's not spoiled, more of a metallic taste. I stopped drinking those brands and stuck with my store brand (Wegmans) or Wegmans organic skim and both are fine. So far, I've only experienced this weird taste in organic Horizon or Organic valley milk, both in cartons. Yesterday I decided to try O.V. again and it's horrible. I'm going to dump it. I don't know what's causing it but it's put me off these two brands of organic milk.

The only milk that tastes decent in Prospect Heights Brooklyn, NY is that which you get at the Farmers Market for about $6 a quart. I used to milk cows as a teenager and this is the only stuff that comes close to the taste I remember.

Organic Valley and Horizon use the UHT pasteurization process which affects the texture of the milk. This process extends shelf life, but I don't care for these brands. My friend says the Natural Cow organic brand is pasteurized the normal way and is second best to the Farmers Market varieties.

Cream-o-land, the ordinary milk brand around here, recently started packaging quarts in plastic instead of cardboard. I cannot abide the plastic taste in milk and will not buy milk in plastic containers. Just one bodega offers another brand, Derle Farms, with quarts packaged in paper cartons. Tuscan milk in paper cartons is also acceptable. Finding decent milk has become a consuming effort nowadays! I don't understand either how the producers can sell such a nasty product. I drink fresh ground coffee from a french press coffee maker, and I am particular about the milk or cream that I use.

I am in Santa Barbara CA and I drink milk on a regular basis. A few months ago I noticed the milk started to taste different. At first I thought it was "bad" milk. Then I realized after subsequent purchases that this formula or process had somehow changed. The 2% milk no longer tastes watery, it tastes fuller and seems thicker. But the other side is it tastes like it is about to spoil. I noticed it in both the Ralph's (Kroger) and Horizon brands. I'll be calling the number on the milk carton next week. 1-800-697-2448.

Target milk is awful for us. Smells and tastes sour to us. Big Y milk seems just fine. We are in CT. Why is Target milk like that?

They know they are putting "Something" in it, or as they put it "something else" when they are asked if they are adding Whey protein.

You should try to make cheese with it.

I hate that funky bad milk taste. I don't seem to get this taste with milk in paper cartons. I go all over to find milk in paper cartons.

I haven't noticed the taste of milk much here in Utah lately but it has all tasted quite clean. Sometimes in the past I have had some 2% that had some taste that I liked and I describe it as a distinctively creamy flavor. I was in Connecticut last weekend and I bought a bottle of Whole milk by "Garelick Farms"
It had a very strong flavor that I absolutely loved.
I kept smelling the bottle after I had finished and kept enjoying the aroma. I was weened on Raw milk from Jersey cows and I wonder if this has something to do with a memory of this flavor. Since I have been back to Utah I have been paying attention to the taste of many milks and they all taste like nothing. I taste Coffee for a living and I have a very sensitive palate. I have been a little dissapointed that the milk here in Utah is so clean tasting with little flavor. Maybe that is a good thing for the Dairy farmers to keep the milk generic tasting like nothing in general so no one notices a taste they may love or hate.
I saw a site for breastfeeding where people have been curious about this subject and mention how what mothers eat can effect how picky a child eats after they stop breast feeding.
I am going to keep investigating this subject and keep in touch.