The Publix where I shop placed electronic readouts at the checkout counters recently. Besides seeing a list of everything you bought, Publix puts little messages at the bottom of the screen.

Usually I would ignore these product promotions. But I was thrilled last week to see the message that Publix-brand milk no longer contains rbST, a hormone injected into cows to increase milk production.

I started buying organic milk when I read a few years ago about how hormones like rbST (also known as rbGH) created ovarian and uterine problems in cows and could be connected with similar problems in women who drank it as kids. I even called Dannon to see if their dairy products came from cows stuffed with hormones, and they wouldn't say.

So I guess I don't have to make an extra trip to Whole Foods anymore to buy their brand of organic milk, which is $2.99 for a half gallon, a steal compared with the Organic Valley-brand milk Publix sells for $3.69 a half gallon. Now I can get a whole gallon of Publix-brand hormone-free milk for $3.99.

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