Milo is an immensely popular drink in Asia and elsewhere, featuring malt powder mixed with milk to produce chocolatey and malty hot beverages. Though sold worldwide in over 40 countries, American consumers never took to Milo due to its stubbornly floating granules that make stirring difficult.

Thomas Mayne, an industrial chemist employed by Nestle at the time, first came up with Milo as an antidote for childhood malnutrition during the 1930s. To do this, he devised Milo as an excellent fortified beverage that can be enjoyed as hot drinks during breakfast or lunch time.

Milo, the popular chocolate and malt drink, comes in various varieties with various health and nutritional values in mind. Labelled “lower sugar” or even no sugar options to meet consumer demands for healthier drinks; for example in Singapore Nestle has released both 50% less sugar (MILO Gao Siew Dai) and sugar-free MILO Kosong options which carry the Healthier Choice symbol of Singapore government health promotion board.

MILO has designed its lower sugar options through a painstaking process to meet both taste and nutritional demands, according to R&D head Olivier Aprikian. Consumer testing also ensured these new offerings remained deliciously satisfying.

Milo made with low-fat milk is generally considered safe to consume; however, as it contains nearly two teaspoons of added sugar – more than the recommended daily allowance for both children and adults – drinking too many sweetened or fizzy drinks can distract children from incorporating other nutritious food sources into their diets.