The 411 on Powdered Milk

Why Store Milk?
#1 - you use it a lot and your kids like it. Can't really live without it now, you wouldn't want to live without it in an emergency. Powdered milk contains all the nutrients found in fresh milk except the fat. It is also easy to cook with. You could also make yogurt and cheese with powered milk if you wanted to.

How Much to Store?
The LDS Church’s Home Production and Storage Manual suggests that you store 60 lbs of dry milk for an adult and 30 lbs for a child for your one year supply. This is based on 3 cups of milk per day for adults and 1.5 cups of milk per day for children. For a 3 month supply you would need 4 #10 cans per adult and 2 #10 cans per child if you use this much milk on a regular basis. That being said, you should store what is best for your family based on what your family normally uses.
When calculating how much to store, be aware of different concentrations of milk powder. Western Family powdered milk is the least concentrated; using 1/3 c powder to 1 cup of water. Milk from the cannery and the Provident Pantry brand are both 2/3 c powder to 1 quart of water.

What to Store?
Powdered milk comes in instant or regular, real milk or milk substitute. There is no nutrient difference between instant and regular. Instant milk mixes easier with water and is more expensive. Real powdered non-fat milk will have only one ingredient: Pasteurized skim milk. Milk “Drinks” are not the same as real dried milk - do not buy it. Morning Moos is a milk drink, made mostly of whey (a byproduct of making cheese.) Milk substitute drinks do not contain the milk solids that are necessary in making yogurt or cheese but they may taste better. Real non-fat dry milk can cost twice as much as does a substitute.
You can also store evaporated milk, cream substitutes, powdered cheese or butter, and don’t forget baby formula if you have a baby.

How long does it last?
The church says its #10 can of non-fat dried milk will last 20 years. This is not optimal, you can imagine the effects of time on the nutritional value and taste. Milk is extremely sensitive to temperature. At 50˚F it will store for 48 months, at 90˚F just 3 months. The #10 cans store longer because it is not exposed to the air.

How to use it:
Substitute powdered milk for milk in all your cooking to rotate your supply. You can also use reconstituted powdered milk with a little vanilla extract on your cereal in the morning. If you want to drink powdered milk expect that it will taste different from regular milk. And it has to be really, really cold! And it is so easy to use it to make this yogurt!