Greek yoghurt review

• Greek yoghurt has a healthy image, but the yummiest products aren't necessarily good for you
• We tell you which low fat and high protein yoghurts are top for taste
• Other than the name, there's not much difference between Greek-style and regular natural yoghurt

We eat it with our muesli, bake cakes with it, dollop it on pavlovas, use it to dress potato salad, create savoury sauces with it and devour it on its own. There's no denying the versatility of Greek yoghurt, but with so many brands on the market which one should you choose? 

We review 22 unsweetened supermarket Greek yoghurts, from brands including Chobani, Farmers Union and Jalna, to see which products are top for taste. 

Plus, we look at Greek yoghurt ingredients, reveal how it's made, and answer the question: is Greek yoghurt healthy?

Also in this article:

• Meet the experts 
• How we test
• Nutrients in yoghurt 
• Yoghurt comparison table

Best tasting Greek yoghurt

There were many delicious Greek yoghurts on test, but the following three products came out on top, achieving overall scores of more than 80%. 

Coles Greek Style Natural Yoghurt

Overall score: 86%
Price per kg: $3.90

Experts say: "Smooth and glossy appearance. Clean flavour, good body. Very smooth, indulgent and creamy. Pleasant upfront acid balanced with creamy profile. Really clean finish. Nice!"

Farmers Union Greek Style All Natural Yogurt

Overall score: 83%
Price per kg: $5.00

Experts say: "Good, clean flavour. Smooth and glossy appearance. Thick, creamy texture and mouthfeel. Really creamy taste with a nice balance of acidity and citrusy aftertaste. Very good product."

Tamar Valley Greek Style All Natural Yoghurt

Overall score: 82%
Price per kg: $6.30

Experts say: "Glossy, shiny appearance and a nice, clean aroma. Good, full body with smooth, thick texture. Moderate to high acid which is pleasant and stands up against the fat."

Best tasting low fat 

Trying to limit your fat intake? The following product is low fat, but still tasty. 

Coles Light Greek Style Natural Yoghurt

Overall score: 78%
Price per kg: $3.90

Experts say: "Smooth appearance with soft body. Sour, citrusy, clean flavour. Good, sharp, persistent acid. Excellent example of high protein Greek."

Best tasting high protein 

Looking for high protein? The following product is a good source, and rates well for taste too. 

Chobani Greek Yogurt Plain Whole Milk

Overall score: 78%
Price per kg: $6.30

Experts say: "A good sheen, clean aroma and mildly acidic flavour. Nice thick spoonable texture, with a clean mouthfeel and dry finish."

For full product details and to find out how each yoghurt scored in our taste test, see our yoghurt comparison table. 

Is Greek yoghurt good for you?

Greek yoghurt is generally considered to be highly nutritious, helped in part by its association with the heart-healthy Mediterranean diet. But the amounts of beneficial (and less desirable) nutrients varied widely across the spread of Greek yoghurt products in our review. 

Nutrients in yoghurt

What's in my Greek yoghurt? 

The core ingredients needed for making yoghurt are just milk and live starter cultures (bacteria). Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus are the typical fermenting cultures for Greek yoghurt, and are what gives a yoghurt its unique flavour. 

Probiotics may also be added to yoghurt, often for the purpose of marketing differentiation. But while some products specify the genus and/or species (Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidus and Lactobacillus casei, for example), most don't list how much, so you have no idea how much – or how little – bacteria is in the yoghurt. 

More than half the products on test also contain cream (which improves texture and mouthfeel), and most contain additional milk solids (which produces a firmer yoghurt and improves stability and nutritional value). 

A couple also contain additives. Black Swan Low Fat Greek Style Yoghurt contains prebiotic dietary fibre inulin which creates a creamy mouthfeel and cornstarch which acts as a thickener. The thickener 1442 (from tapioca and maize) in Coles Light Greek Style Natural Yoghurt does a similar job. 

Yoghurt production processes 

There's a certain expectation that Greek-style yoghurts will be sour, creamy and highly nutritious. But in fact there's no requirement in Australia for Greek-style yoghurt to be made in a certain way or contain particular ingredients. A yoghurt labelled Greek style isn't always high in protein and fat, for example. And similar to regular yoghurt, one labelled Greek style may also be: 

• Stirred. A standard process for yoghurt in which it ferments and sets in a vat, is stirred prior to cooling and then pumped into the end container. 
• Strained. This is the method traditionally associated with Greek yoghurt. In this process the liquid whey is strained out after it sets, which concentrates the protein and results in a thick and creamy end product. 
• Pot set yoghurt is the result of milk and live cultures being added straight into the final package and is often characterised by a firm, jelly-like texture. 

Our experts 

_{(Left to right) Carlo Mason, Robyn Gray, Petra Sugiarto, Sonia Cousins, Peter Commins, Andre Sandison.}

• Petra Sugiarto has an academic background in food technology and microbiology and has been working in the dairy industry for 20 years. For the last 13 years she has been on the judging panels for Dairy Industry Association of Australia (DIAA) and Sydney Royal Cheese & Dairy Produce competitions and for Dairy Australia's annual Australian Grand Dairy Awards (AGDA). 
• Sonia Cousins has worked as a cheesemonger for more than 12 years. As well as judging regularly at the AGDA and other dairy produce shows in Australia (and occasionally overseas), she runs a cheese education and consulting business called Cheese The Day, which presents cheese appreciation classes for the public, and workshops covering cheese sensory evaluation for industry professionals. 
• Carlo Mason brings with him 25 years' experience in the dairy industry ranging from cheese making/production and starter culture and cheese research (with DIAL – Dairy Innovation Aust Limited) to technical and commercial supply of starter cultures to the industry (with global bioscience company Chr. Hansen). Carlo's dairy produce judging credits include the AGDA (for nine years), Sydney Royal and DIAA competitions. 
• Andre Sandison is a head teacher at Le Cordon Bleu Sydney Culinary Arts Institute. As a qualified pastry chef, dairy is one of the cornerstones of his craft. He loves sharing both his passion for the profession and the simple pleasures that come from quality ingredients. In Andre's words: "Teaching students about pastry enables the next generation to put their own signature on the profession. Dairy, including yogurt, provides a classic foundation that a pastry chef respects and appreciates for the distinct textures and flavours it brings to our craft." 
• Peter Commins recently retired from NSW Food Authority after 44 years, during which time his main line of work was auditing Food Safety Programs – mainly with the dairy industry – for compliance to the Food Standards Code and Food Act. Peter has judged dairy produce for the DIAA and Sydney Royal competitions for more than three decades.
• Robyn Gray has worked in the food and flavour industry over 30 years, with a technical background focused in ice cream and general dairy textures, and more recently flavour delivery systems. Robyn currently works in the flavour industry and regularly exercises her expertise on judging panels for Australian food competitions, including the AGDA. 

How we test 

Products We included yoghurts labelled as 'Greek' or 'Greek style' available through at least one of the major supermarket chains. We excluded flavoured, sweetened and lactose-free products, as well as those not made from cow's milk. 

Tasting The experts tasted the yoghurt samples blind (without knowing the brands) in a randomised order, which was different for each expert. 

Scores Experts independently judged all 22 yoghurts, giving a score out of 10 for each of the following criteria: appearance, aroma, taste and texture. The overall score is the weighted average of these scores (taste 45%, texture 40%, appearance 10%, aroma 5%). 

Yoghurt product comparison

The 22 Greek yoghurts we taste tested are listed below in alphabetical order. To order by another criteria, simply click on the column headings.

Product	Pack image	Score	Pack size (g)	Price $*	Price per kg ($)	Serve size (g)	Energy per 100g (kJ)	Protein per 100g (g)	Fat per 100g (g)	Sat fat per 100g (g)	Sugars per 100g (g)	Calcium per 100g (mg)	Good source of calcium**	Good source of protein**	Ingredients
Black Swan Greek Style Yoghurt		69	850	5.19	6.11	141	453	8.3	3.8	2.6	5.6	250	Y	Y	Milk, milk solids, yoghurt cultures
Black Swan Low Fat Greek Style Yoghurt		54	850	5.19	6.11	141	400	8.9	2.3	1.5	3.4	240	Y	Y	Milk, skim milk, milk solids, dietary fibre (inulin), cornstarch, yoghurt cultures
Chobani Greek Yogurt Plain		68	1000	6.30	6.30	181.4	240	9.7	0.2	0.1	3.3	120	Y	Y	Skim milk, live yoghurt cultures
Chobani Greek Yogurt Plain Whole Milk		78	1000	6.30	6.30	181.4	366	8.7	4	2.6	2.7	100	N	Y	Skim milk, cream, live yoghurt cultures
Coles Greek Style Natural Yoghurt		86	1000	3.90	3.90	100	549	4.9	9.5	6.8	5.5	169	N	N	Skimmed milk, cream, skimmed milk powder, starter culture
Coles Light Greek Style Natural Yoghurt		78	1000	3.90	3.90	100	338	6.3	2	1.4	6.3	217	Y	N	Skimmed milk, milk solids, cream, thickener (from tapioca and maize) (1442), starter culture
Dairy Farmers Greek Style Natural Yogurt		75	1000	6.60	6.60	125	557	4.7	9.7	6.4	6.9	166	Y	N	Milk, milk solids, cream, yogurt cultures, S. thermophilus and L. bulgaricus
Easiyo Unsweetened Greek Style (A)		57	1000	3.50	3.50	200	344	4.6	4.3	3.1	6.7	167	Y	N	Pasteurised whole and skim milk solids 98% (contains natural emulsifier, lecithin, derived from soybean), live lactic cultures (L. bulgaricus, S. thermophilus, L. acidophilus)
Evia Greek Strained Yoghurt Natural No Added Sugar		74	700	5.50	7.86	170	457	9.4	5.5	3.9	2.8	130	Y	Y	Fresh pasteurised milk and cream, skim milk powder, live and probiotic cultures (including S. thermophilus, Acidophilus, Bifidus and Casei)
Farmers Union Greek Style All Natural Yogurt		83	1000	5.00	5.00	125	529	4.8	9.7	6.5	5.2	162	Y	N	Milk, milk solids, cream, yoghurt culture: S. thermophilus and L. bulgaricus
Farmers Union Greek Style All Natural Yogurt Light		71	1000	5.00	5.00	125	345	5.8	3.9	2.6	6	197	Y	N	Milk, milk solids, cream, yoghurt cultures: S. thermophilus and L. bulgaricus
Five:am Organic Greek Style Yoghurt		70	700	6.00	8.57	100	469	5.2	8	4.8	7.2	172	N	N	Organic milk, organic cream,organic whole milk solids, live cultures (incl. probiotics Acidophilus and Bifidus)
Jalna Pot Set Greek Yoghourt Low Fat		62	1000	6.90	6.90	100	423	5.7	3	1.9	6.7	180	N	N	Pasteurised reduced fat milk, milk solids, live cultures (Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus casei > 300,000,000 Probiotic Count Per Serve)
Jalna Pot Set Greek Yoghourt Natural		68	1000	6.90	6.90	100	540	3.8	10	7.1	4.8	130	N	N	Pasteurised Whole Milk, Cream, Live Cultures (Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus casei > 300,000,000 Probiotic Count Per Serve)
Lyttos (Aldi) Greek Style Natural Yogurt Pot Set		73	1000	4.69	4.69	100	540	3.8	10	7.1	4.8	130	N	N	Milk, cream, live cultures (contains Acidophilus, Bifidus and Casei)
Lyttos (Aldi) Greek Style Natural Yogurt Thick & Creamy		78	1000	3.69	3.69	100	614	5.7	10	6.5	8.6	219	Y	N	Milk, milk solids, cream, live yoghurt cultures
Lyttos (Aldi) Lite Greek Style Natural Yogurt		65	1000	3.69	3.69	100	374	5.8	4	2.7	7	210	Y	N	Skim milk, milk solids, cream, live yoghurt cultures
ProCal Authentic Greek Natural Yoghurt		71	900	6.99	7.77	100	488	6.8	8	5.2	4.5	140	N	N	Milk, milk solids, live yoghurt cultures
Tamar Valley Greek Style All Natural Yoghurt		82	1000	6.00	6.00	100	542	5.3	9.8	5.9	5.2	160	N	N	Milk, cream, milk solids, live cultures
Tamar Valley Light Greek Style All Natural Yoghurt		75	1000	6.00	6.00	100	379	6	4.7	2.8	6.1	181	N	N	Milk, milk solids, cream, live cultures
Woolworths 99% Fat Free Pot Set Greek Style Yoghurt		53	1000	3.00	3.00	200	169	3.9	<1	<0.1	3.3	140	Y	N	Pasteurised skim milk, skim milk solids, lactic starter cultures (including S. thermophilus, L. acidophilus, Bifidobacterium, L. casei)
Woolworths Natural Greek Style Yoghurt		79	1000	3.90	3.90	200	454	6	7.3	5	4.7	153	Y	Y	Pasteurised milk and cream, dried skimmed milk, lactic starter cultures (including S. thermophilus, L. acidophilus, Bifidobacterium, L. casei)

Table notes 

*Price paid in February 2018 

**According to nutrient content claims requirements of the Food Standards Code 

(A) As prepared