What actually does “fresh” mean? Don’t ask Coles’ social media team — they are struggling with that today. Yesterday, a post on the supermarket giant’s Facebook page asked if Coles’ own “Coles Brand Fresh” milk was made from reconstituted milk powder rather than being “fresh”, as the name suggests. In answer to the post, Coles said “We can confirm that Coles Brand Fresh milk is made from reconstituted milk powder.”

Coles Facebook milk

The official response also defended the amount Coles pays to Murray Goulburn for its home-brand milk, saying that Coles’ milk only accounts for 6% of Murray Goulburn’s production. After the post was shared on Reddit and gained traction in the media overnight, Coles was quick to say that the post featured a fairly major typo, and that Coles Brand Fresh milk was, in fact, fresh milk, not made from powder. The original message is the one that has stuck, though, with many follow-up posts and comments on Coles’ Facebook page from customers expressing their disgust with the supermarket. With so much focus on Coles and its deal with Murray Goulburn, you’d think staff would be on top of where the milk comes from.

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