Tips to save money on Stage 3 Formula Milk

You know when your kid passes one, they will go into Stage 3. As it is now "legal" for formula milk brands to advertise, you would see a lot of brands offering free Stage 3 samples. If you collect a sample from each brand (assuming each can is full-tin and there are 10 brands priced around S$~40 each), you can save up to ~S$400. Having said that, most brands give a smaller sample can. 

The dilemma most parents would face is whether to really rock the boat for such small gains. Your baby is probably used to whatever he/she has been drinking for the past year. So why change things if everything is going well? Push came to a shove for me because the original milk brand we were taking (established one, not some cheapo brand) pissed me off a bit. 

The original brand from their official retailer too delivered milk cans which were all bloated/ dented. For the bloated cans, they told me it was actually ok to consume after their investigation. I refused to take any of the bullshit obviously and till now I am pretty certain they were trying to dump defective goods on me. They only agreed to a refund after I requested for an official email in writing stating that the bloated tins were fit for consumption. (All those legal training didn't go to waste.)

 The hassle of the returns etc. annoyed me greatly but I decided not to flash all the photos and correspondence here because the customer service lady was overall very nice, helpful and an innocent party to their management's baloney. Obviously, this wasn't the first time I came to blows with them questioning their marketing materials etc. (Guess I am one hell of a difficult customer).

So, I decided to take the plunge and start the swap of milk. Basically, you just have to do a ratio mix of the milks and slowly reduce the ratio of the milk you want to swap out. There is a lot of trial and error and my own mother told me "hey, it's even better to mix milk cos they are all fortified with different additional nutrients" (which I have to agree is very true). Also, because of the free tins here and there and the freedom to tap on the best milk promotions, I had a bit of savings (HAHAHA!) The only troublesome part is the mixing at every feed (since the ratio to water differs, needa do a bit of math)

Here's some of my findings from the trying of the different brands we have tried thus far:

MIXER CANDIDATES

1. Dumex Mamil Gold Stage 3 ($40.80): Has a bit of a vanilla taste which I thought smells super fragrant but my kid rejected it. Had lots of tins of it because I bought under a promotion so it is now quite a constant mixer.


2. Similac Total Comfort Stage 3 ($53.90 for 820g): This one had a bit of a oaty smell. Rule of thumb, I reject swapping to a milk which has too distinct a taste/smell. It was also chalkier and harder to dissolve in room temperature water in comparison. 

BASE CANDIDATES

1. Similac Organic Stage 3 ($57 for 900g): This is a super strong contender as a replacement. Just that there are barely any attractive promos and it is a lot pricier.


2. UHT Full Cream Milk ($3.80 for 6*200g): This was a recommendation by a fellow Mummy. I use this when we go out because it is so convenient. For home use, not as much because I would have to cut and pour into a milk bottle which can be a bit messy. 


3. Nature One Organic Stage 3 ($37.50 for 900g): This was actually the first sample we tried. At the point, I didn't mix and my kid slurped it all up. It is cheaper too! Some of our other friends are taking this brand too, so we might end up swapping to this for good :)

Note: Will still be trying and updating on the go!