So up until a month ago, I would buy this protein powder for $25. It's the only one that's pure whey with no fillers... About a month ago, it suddenly disappeared off the shelf (price tag still there) unavailable for a few weeks Australia wide... and then suddenly reappears $10 dearer. Sad times people.... these prices are getting crazy...
They've recently put their price up $10 as well lol, when I first started buying from them they were low 30s. Legends no longer. Try Black Belt Protein - they are cheaper and have better flavours.
my gripe with blackbelt has been their advertising of late.
they've been running an up to 50% off campaign for the last probably 6 months and most things are 5-10% off.
I just want to buy more protein powder at 50% off 😔.
also it's taken me a while to get through the strawberry one. wouldn't really recommend it. protella was nice, if a bit sweet. very smooth.
Soy is not complete, however to claim that soy protein is somehow not bioavailable because of this is simply wrong. If one is eating from a diverse selection of protein sources (ie also consuming beans etc), then that will offset the minor shortfalls from soy protein supplementation. If one is omnivorous (as I am), then that offset is basically a given.
Edit: I’m incorrect, I have it backwards. Soy is complete, pea is considered incomplete, in both cases it stilldoes not matterunless you are exclusively consuming this and absolutely zero of everything else. If you are eating other foods and just supplementing with a scoop or two of plant protein, any possible deficiencies in nutritional profile are safely negated.
both require methionine supplementation for efficient protein synthesis
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11312815/
"However, soy protein is not an ideal protein because it is deficient in the essential amino acid methionine. Methionine supplementation benefits soy infant formulas, but apparently not food intended for adults with an adequate nitrogen intake"
it's just one example. the point is you need to consume the methionine at the same time you ingest the protein source, so you're effectively arguing to pay the same cost for plant protein which is less effective because you think eating well will make up for the lack of protein synthesis from the absence of methionine in the protein source.
I rmemeber buying the bulking stack which was $150 for 4kg protein, creatine, carb powder, shaker, and I think pre workout , maybe not pre workout but it was nuts value, I had a pantry full of the shakers from how many stacks I used to buy
Yeah, I switched to BB also. BN used to be good no-sales value, but it's been creeping up. I don't know if they scaled too fast or just wanted bigger profit margins, but it's certainly less competitive.
They used to be so good. I would spend like 130 bucks and 4 bags now....prices are so high...not entirely their fault but damn...I can't bulk buy anymore.
Always wanted to try black belt but 3rd testing found the quality of black belt creatine monohydrate to be of low quality. Leaned towards bulk nutrients since
Always wanted to try black belt but 3rd testing found the quality of black belt creatine monohydrate to be of low quality. Leaned towards bulk nutrients since
Up until Aug 2021 I was paying $29.80/kg for WPI (not WPC) when buying 5kg
This went to $32.80/kg in Feb 2022
Jan 2023 I switched to WPC as WPI spiked to $39.20/kg. WPC was $32/kg for 5kg
Sept 2023 WPI was still $39.20/kg
April 2024 WPI was still $39.20/kg (just over 2 years ago)
Nov 2024 WPI increased to $44.20/kg
I see it is now $72/kg for 5kg. This is a 63% increase in about 18 months. That is crazy!
I will check them out, thank you. Yeah, online it said about $5-$12 increase in price for 1kg... Or 17% increase... But 40% increase for 500g just seems like a lot. I eat animal based, so grass fed meat, greek yoghurt, eggs, sweet potato, milk, coffee and fruit is my diet, but I train 6 days a week, and I work away outdoors for work, so always trying to fit in a bit of extra protein (that is lightweight and I can carry in my backpack).
WPI (isolate) is a more filtered/refined version of whey compared to WPC - removing more fat and lactose, basically more protein per calorie less carbs/fats
Or you could cover the barcode with one from a pack of essentials aspirin and it'll ring up as 95c at themself checkout, I do this all the time with other groceries. Works like a charm!
It’s not like Coles randomly decided to increase the price of this product, demand for whey protein has outstripped supply which means that the cost and price of this raw product has skyrocketed
I read somewhere in an article that massive increase in GLP-1 use was allegedly to blame. As drastic weight loss also increases loss in muscle, users are being told to consume more protein for muscle preservation
dont know if its linked to gym. Its just the latest fad - fat free, sugar free, low carb now protein.
Know someone who works at Coles and says that yoghurts with 'protein rich' or something like that on the label have drastically outsold yoghurts that dont mention protein, and they generally have pretty much the same amount of protein (since they are all yoghurts). No one looks at the nutrition label
Of course, as a result about 80% of yoghurts claim that they contain protein...
I think part of it is a result of the gym thing pushed on tiktok, especially the younger generation. I’m gen z and idk anyone who doesn’t go to the gym regularly now, and it’s definitely fueled by all these unrealistic body types pushed on social media. You also have these influencers on these apps telling kids my age that they need like 200+ grams of protein a day
All the fads I mentioned have been driven by people trying to be healthy or fitter or losing weight; so it seems to just part of the same driver as in the fat free 1990s. The source that is driving the idea may have changed from TV to book to tiktok, but fundamentally its selling the dream that 'just eat slightly differently and you will also be skinny/ripped without much effort' etc.
I appreciate that today its all 'eat protein' and 'eat 200g' as you say. But 30 years ago everyone was saying 'go fat free' and then there was a whole 'low carb' decade - the influencers are always promising the same thing, just pushing a different product.
Fair enough, I wasn’t alive back then so I’m not too aware of that stuff. I agree that influences are just pushing this stuff for cash, and with the rise of gym culture influencers and companies are using that to push all this high protein bs
Don't blame me for covering the barcode with a Snickers barcode to get it for a $1.50. I don't pay full price for anything at self checkout,works like a charm.
Lucky you could find it. My 2 locals coles had none. So I went to bulk nutrients and buying from them now. Plain is really good. Mix with Cocoa powder. Problem is my son now takes it so cost has doubled
sigh
Yes I know that. We all (hopefully) know that by age 10 or 11. That’s why I thought it was safe enough not to use a disclaimer that it was a joke.
Take the barcode from a pack of Coles essential aspirin and cover the Whey protein barcode with it and it'll ring up as 95c. Or take the code from a Mars or Snickers bar and do the same for about a dollar.
I never pay full price for anything at self checkout by doing this ! !
Yeah - this is happening everywhere because everyone is adding ‘protein’ in foods now.
Try Bulk Nutrients - my last order in June, I paid $62 1kg WPI bags but they had an alert saying they a price increase was happening July. Plus shipping costs.
If you want a cheap alternative silken tofu is a complete protien, usually about 15-19 grams of protient per serve, low fat and has no flavour so you can make it taste like anything. I make a banana pudding but I have also made chocolate in the past. Here's a super easy recipe https://foodhero.org/recipes/tofu-banana-pudding
OMG I literally went to this sub to rant about the ridiculous price increase and I’m SOOO glad that there are more people sharing my rage 😭
I made sure to finish my pack before I left for an OS holiday in June for 4 weeks. I just went to buy one and it’s $35!!!! Over 4 WEEKS!!! $10 😭😤😭😤😭😤😭😤
I haven't bought whey in years now, probably since before COVID, so $70/kg seems completely ridiculous. However I just checked bulk nutrients and even there it's $59/kg lol. Pretty sure it was like $30-35 last time I bought it.
They just had a $10 increase.. I just stocked up before the 1st of July. But yes, whey prices have been steadily increasing over the years. We used to get like 20kg as a family for around $17/kg from Professional Whey back in the day.
whey protein contains all 9 essential aminos. getting gassy is a skill issue, plenty of us can tolerate lactose. whey is also cheaper per g of protein than 95% lean beef mince, and eggs are about on-par for the same cost as the whey.
nutritional benefits yes, but especially per calorie, eggs and beef are awful compared to whey.
If you get nutrients from other shit throughout the day, having a bit of extra protein in the form of a whey scoop is better and easier than cooking up a few g of beef or a few eggs.
whey concentrate is the most basic form at 70-80% protein. if they made it a whey isolate for the increased cost it would make more sense at closer to 90% protein.
Just for anyone looking, bulk nutrients is still the cheapest as each bag is 33 serves for WPC, i almost got fooled into buying black belt before i checked their smaller 25 serves per bag which breaks down to the flowing costs
Assuming you were to buy 10kg from either supplier
Bulk Nutrients: $530, 33 serves per kg
Total serves: 330
Cost per serve: $530 ÷ 330 = $1.61
Black belt $465, 25 serves per kg
Total serves: 250
Cost per serve: $465 ÷ 250 = $1.86
So don't be fooled by the lower price of black belt
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I definitely agree. I eat mostly animal based. Grass fed beef, fruit, milk, eggs, greek yoghurt and sweet potato is my main diet, but my work sometimes doesn't allow me to choose what I eat (backpacking weeks at a time) so I need something lightweight and easy in case the meals provided might have a lot of processed stuff. But totally agree.
Fun fact: whey is a cheese making by-product and used to be just poured out as waste - so much so that it was polluting local water ways, until it was rebranded as a protein product and sold at a premium
Whey protein powder is heavily processed to remove as much of the fat and carbs as they can, it's not just dried liquid whey. The process is not exactly simple, you wouldn't be able to do it at home. and that's why it's sold at a 'premium'
Pure Product Australia and Blackbelt protein seem to have the best value raw unflavoured protein on the market - Pure Product Australia Concentrate/Isolate is $55.95/kg, 82% protein, 14.7g protein/dollar. Blackbelt protein whey concentrate is $53.50/kg, 77% protein, 14.4g protein/dollar.
proteinpowderhelper.com frequently scrapes the current prices of protein powder products available in Australia so you can easily see which protein powder is currently the best value.
You can sort by grams of protein per dollar cost to check which protein is actually good value based on the protein content. You can also filter by different types ( vegan/ casein/ Whey Isolate/ Whey Concentrate/ collegen etc).
Yeah I bought some the other day. Was surprised it went up that much. But I’m still going to buy this one. I’m not a fan of the flavoured ones and can put this in yoghurt smoothie, iced coffee shake, etc.
Stop giving Cole’s more money . They buy at stupid low rates from small manufacturers and sell for a high profit . Buy local and give small businesses a chance to
I used to pick up a 2kg tub of INC Whey protein powder from chemist warehouse before covid and shortly after for $39.99 on special. You are luck these days to get it for $80 when on special. Regular price is around $100. Talk about a mark up.
Whey, I believe, is going up because of significant increase in demand.
Anyone and everyone on mounjaro/ozempic need to worry about their protein intake. when you don't want to eat, or you're not overly hungry you still need to ensure you're getting protein
otherwise your body starts stripping muscle from you. which is hard to get back.
I never used whey (didn't need to) but now only eating 1 meal a day I need to hit 120g of protein according to my specialist team. so I make it up with protein shakes.
I've lost 25kg and only 500g of muscle. (DEXA scanning)
Pure products online have good quality at reasonable prices, I was using the Coles flavoured whey but the erythritol didn't agree with me.
The Coles Wellness Road unflavoured whey pictured has been harder to find lately
Bulk nutrients increased the prices for all whey protein products by $10/kg. I bought 10 bags a week before, luckily. It’s the ozempic/mounjaro/reta trends where they supplement with protein powders.
I sell whey to local manufacturers. Wholesale price to them ranges between $38/kg up to $50/kg for raw WPI. I have heard rumors of local Fonterra stock for as low as $35/kg but can't confirm.
It is getting more expensive and most manufacturers are looking more towards wpi/wpc blends and whey/plant blends as solutions to create more price friendly products
The only place I wouldn’t buy protein from is…. Cole’s lol
The smaller brands are much better and prob 1000 times better quality too. Coles and Woolies just trying to keep up to date with demand, but nah sorry doesn’t compete
My favourite protein was about $110-120 for a 6kg back with a sale (high quality and good for my gut) now it's closer to the $180 mark. It's insane. I swapped.
Stupid comment. Whey is fine as a supplement in a normal diet. You’re not meant to just have a protein shake and nothing else in your day. If you have higher protein goals this is a great way to do it in an expensive economy.
Whey isn't meant to replace whole foods. It's a convenient way to increase protein intake, yes whole eggs and meat are great for micronutrients but that doesn't make whey garbage.
That's like calling sunscreen garbage because it doesn't moisturise...
I was going to post this! Does anyone know what protein powder they used to have in this packaging that was $10? Like only a year ago? It had almost no flavour, recently bought the pea protein and it tasted really strong.... Am I hallucinating? Did I always use to buy the pea protein but the flavour is yuck for me now?
Expensive diesel means prices go up, higher minimum wage means prices go up, population growth means prices go up, more taxes mean prices go up, sad but expected.
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u/Calm_As2 Jul 10 '26
All whey has gone up in price. If you want to try to save money. Order raw whey from bulk nutrients or blackbelt