Choosing yogurt has become a game show. There are so many categories in play, it makes your wheels spin — soft, frozen, plain, regular, fat-free, low-fat, sugar-free, no sugar added, enriched, organic, European-style, French, Greek — the list goes on and on. Plus, it’s reached the point where you now need to have a good understanding of popular culture to determine a winner. That’s the part I find most confusing, so I asked Yoplait for guidance…

Dear Followers of the Yogurt Culture:

People these days definitely need more exposure to different cultures. Yoplait yogurt seems like a great way for them to get it.

I noticed that Yoplait yogurt contains live and active cultures. What’s the difference between live and active? Isn’t something that’s alive usually active? Then again, I know people who are alive, but not very active.

How do cultures manage to stay active even while chilling out in the refrigerator? Are they still active after you swallow them? I’m familiar with throat cultures. Is it possible for a yogurt culture to mate with a throat culture and live in your stomach until an H. pylori eats them?

Thanks for infusing more culture into the world.

A Consumer Services Representative from General Mills, manufacturers of Yoplait, responded with:

Thank you for contacting Yoplait. We are pleased to know that you enjoy our yogurt products.

The cultures added to our yogurt products are lactobacillus bulgaricus and streptococcus thermophilus. Yogurt cultures are added to the milk blend after pasteurization, and are part of the fermentation process. This allows the cultures to remain alive to provide important health benefits.

Yoplait also adds lactobacillus acidophilus to all of its products except Yo-Plus, Yoplait Smoothies, Yoplait Light Smoothies, and Yoplait Go-Gurt Smoothies. These products contain lactobacillus bulgaricus and streptococcus thermophilus.

We hope this information is helpful and that you will continue to choose Yoplait yogurt.

Final Thoughts: Like their yogurt, Yoplait left me wanting more. Although this provided a good start, perhaps they were concerned that too much information might lead to culture shock. After all, while these cultures appear to be beneficial for good health, the thought of swallowing live and active things with names like lactobacillus bulgaricus and streptococcus thermophilus could actually give someone nauseous appetitus. In any case, you can learn lots more about yogurt cultures from these National Yogurt Association Live and Active Culture Yogurt FAQ’s.

It’s no excuse to complain that there’s a lack of culture where you live. Just head for the supermarket and look into Yoplait. You may also find it enlightening to learn more about the culture behind the brands you buy. All you need to do is Write The Company.