Skim milk is milk that has had almost all of its fat removed. Regular whole milk contains about 3-4% fat, which gives it a rich, creamy taste and texture. When dairies make skim milk, they use machines called separators to spin the milk at high speed, pulling out the fat globules that would normally float to the top as cream. What remains is a thinner, lighter milk with less than 0.5% fat.

Today, people choose skim milk for different reasons: some prefer fewer calories, others like the lighter taste, and some recipes work better with it.

Skim milk looks bluer and more translucent than whole milk because fat helps give milk its white, opaque appearance. It tastes less rich but still contains the same protein and calcium as whole milk. Between skim and whole milk, you'll also find reduced-fat options like 1% and 2% milk, which keep some but not all of the original fat content.