Crying over spilt milk

Photograph: David Sillitoe
The clink of glass milk bottles deposited on doorsteps and the hum of the milk van pulling away at the crack of dawn is pretty much a thing of the past.

Cost is just one of the factors that works against the milkman, with delivered milk costing much more than milk at supermarket. City dwellers can also get milk by popping into the neighbourhood shop or the local Tesco on the way home.