Why Does Fairlife Milk Have A Weird Smell Upon Opening?

If you've even casually searched for alternative milk in recent years, you've probably heard of Fairlife. This trendy ultra-filtered milk sets itself apart from the standard stuff in several ways. It's higher in protein and calcium, lower in sugar, lactose-free, and boasts an extra-long shelf life thanks to the high-heat pasteurization process. In other words, Fairlife is kind of like the antithesis of raw milk (which you shouldn't drink before knowing the risks involved). Despite its impressive nutrition profile, Fairlife milk is often praised for its pleasant, creamy, and relatively normal taste. Unfortunately, Fairlife also sets itself apart from other milks in a less positive way.

Some Fairlife customers have noticed that the milk can smell weird upon opening. The unpleasant odor has been compared to rotten eggs, sulfur, manure, and even less appetizing things that we'll leave to the imagination. Fairlife has repeatedly assured customers that the smell is a totally normal side effect of the milk's higher protein content and pasteurization process. Although Fairlife has not provided further details on the exact cause of the odor, milk can take on an unpleasant eggy smell due to volatile sulfur compounds produced when proteins are heated to a higher temperature during pasteurization. Fairlife milk is both pasteurized at high temperatures and higher in protein than regular milk, thus creating the perfect storm for loads of pungent volatile sulfur compounds.

Many customers have understandably interpreted the unpleasant odor of Fairlife milk upon opening to mean the milk has spoiled and should be tossed (particularly painful given it typically costs around double the price of regular milk). However, at least according to Fairlife, this is not necessary. The company acknowledged the smelly milk issue in a 2017 post on X, writing that what it rather generously described as "a bit of an unfamiliar odor" is perfectly safe and normal and that the company was working to fix the issue. 

Evidently, the issue has not been fixed because eight years later, Fairlife continues to respond to complaints about the smell with a similar answer: it is a normal side effect of the high protein and pasteurization techniques, and the company is working on solving it. Fairlife also addresses the issue on its website, noting that the "slight odor" is normal and should go away after a couple of minutes. So, if you have any doubts, maybe just wait a bit and try the good old milk sniff test one more time before dumping all that smelly, protein-packed, expensive dairy down the drain.