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Millions of Americans apparently believe chocolate milk comes from brown cows

Does chocolate milk come from brown cows?” Apparently millions of Americans are under the impression that the answer is yes, yes it does.

In news that may not surprise some, a massive 7 per cent of Americans allegedly believe that chocolate milk comes from brown cows.

This is according to a survey commissioned by the Innovation Centre for US Dairy in 2017, which found that millions of American citizens are somehow under the impression that their beloved choccy milk is a product of brown cows.

Chocolate Milk Americans
Photo: Getty Images

In fact, the belief was so widespread that the Centre was prompted to write an entire piece debunking it, where, in answer to the question “Does chocolate milk come from brown cows?”, they clarified: “Actually, chocolate milk – or any flavoured milk for that matter – is white cow’s milk with added flavouring and sweeteners”.

Unfortunately, it gets worse. According to the survey, 16.4 million believe that chocolate milk can be consumed straight from the udder of a brown cow, and a further 48 per cent were not sure where chocolate milk even came from.

The most surprising part might not even be how many – but the fact that the number isn’t higher. For decades, surveys have found Americans to be consistently uneducated when it comes to basic agricultural studies: where food comes from, how it’s stored, and how it’s made.

Another 29 per cent allegedly use their children as an excuse to buy the milk so that they can drink it themselves.

To make matters worse, an early ’90s study commissioned by the Department of Agriculture found that nearly 1 in 5 adults did not know that hamburgers are made from beef. The 2020 equivalent of that might well be people avoiding buying Corona Beer in the fear that they’ll contract coronavirus.

Maybe it’s time agricultural studies became a priority in American schools – because I don’t know about you, but I am yet to spot myself a strawberry coloured cow.