A surprise in the dairy aisle. Standing in front of the grocery-store fridge, many newcomers are puzzled: milk is sold in soft plastic bags. It is a very real habit in Quebec — and in a few other provinces, such as Ontario and the Maritimes.
How it works. The large 4-litre bag actually contains three pouches of about 1.33 litres each, according to The Canadian Encyclopedia. You slide one pouch at a time into a rigid pitcher made for it, snip a small corner, and pour. The other two pouches stay in the fridge, sealed, waiting their turn.
It's not only bags. Milk also comes in cartons and plastic jugs, as elsewhere. But the bag remains very common, especially in the large formats, often because it works out a bit cheaper per litre.
Where the habit comes from. The bag format spread in the 1970s, at the time of the switch to the metric system: pouches suited the new sizes well, with less packaging than cartons or jugs. The habit stuck.
The handy trick. To use milk bags, you need a milk pitcher — a rigid plastic holder, sold for a few dollars at any grocery or dollar store. Without a pitcher, a floppy pouch is almost impossible to handle. And if the idea does not appeal to you, there is no obligation: just buy cartons.
Good to know for newcomers. Don't be thrown off: milk in bags is perfectly normal here. Get a pitcher, or stick to cartons — your choice. To find your way around the grocery stores here, see our guide to grocery stores in Quebec.
