Cow milk vs Buffalo milk: nutrition per 100 g

India drinks both, and in the north and west buffalo milk is often the default. Per 100 g of whole milk, buffalo milk has 6.6 g of fat against 4.5 g in cow milk, about 1.5 times as much, and 4.63 g of saturated fat against 2.71 g. That lifts its energy to 107 kcal against 73 kcal. Buffalo milk also has less water, 80.7 g against 86.6 g, which is why it feels thicker and sets into a creamier dahi. Carbohydrate is listed at 8.4 g against 4.9 g, with lactose-type sugars at 5.3 g and 4.9 g.

Buffalo milk is often described as far richer, but on protein the gap is small: 3.7 g per 100 g against 3.3 g. Each 100 g covers 7 and 6 per cent of a man's daily protein need. Calcium is almost identical, 121 mg in buffalo milk and 118 mg in cow milk, and both cover 12 per cent of an adult's daily requirement per 100 g. So choosing buffalo milk for calcium gains almost nothing, while adding fat. Cow milk has a little more phosphorus, 97 mg against 87 mg, and potassium, 115 mg against 109 mg.

Cow milk has more beta-carotene, 14 micrograms against 8, which gives cow milk and cow ghee their pale yellow tint; buffalo milk looks whiter. Buffalo milk has slightly more thiamine, riboflavin, folate and vitamin C, though all are small amounts. Both milks are very poor sources of iron, 0.15 and 0.16 mg per 100 g, and cow milk ranks 238th of 242 foods for iron. That is why toddlers who fill up on milk and eat few solids can run short of iron, and why paediatricians advise limiting milk once solids begin.

Buffalo milk's higher fat and solids make it the favourite for thick dahi, malai, paneer, khoa and ghee, and for the strong, creamy chai of north Indian dhabas. Cow milk is lighter, the usual choice in much of the south and east, and often preferred for small children and older adults. Packet milk is commonly a standardised blend; toned and double toned milk have part of the fat removed, so their values sit below both whole milks shown here.