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	Yoghurt Starters
Yoghurt starter contains cultures of bacteria that we use to inoculate the milk and begin the fermentation. The bacteria that we should have in our yoghurt starters are:
	Lactobacillus bulgaricus Streptococcus thermophilus. Lactobacillus acidophilus (optional)
In fact, without the first two strains above we can't really call it yoghurt. The strain we must avoid in our SCD™ yoghurt is Bifidus as it has been found to cause bacterial overgrowth in the gut. Bifidus comes in quite a few variations e.g. Bifidobacterium infantis, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Lactobacillus Bifidus, Bifidobacterium longum etc, in general avoid anything that has bifid in its name. Some yoghurt that we use as a starter can contain sucrose, cream and lactose however these are consumed in the 24hr fermentation.

Where you live is one of the biggest factors in deciding the best starter for you. Check out the products in your local supermarkets or health food shops observing the above guidelines.

The following commercial yoghurts are only to be used as
starters on SCD™and are not legal otherwise

U.S. and Canada - The Lyo-san Yogourmet freeze-dried yogurt starter powder is very popular and has a proven track record. It has sucrose listed as an ingredient but this is consumed in the 24hr fermentation. Lyo-san starter is available from Lucy's kitchen shop and many other outlets.
Also Dannon in the U.S. make a commercial plain natural yoghurt, avoid the low fat and non fat versions as they both contain pectin.
UK - Total Authentic Greek yoghurt is the most popular commercial starter, however it does not contain Lactobacillus acidophilus. Many people take an acidophilus supplement in addition to the 24 hr SCD™ yoghurt made from Total starter. Total is likely to be available throughout Europe.
UK - Organic Sheeps Milk Live Yoghurt 450g . Made by Woodlands and contains the 3 required cultures without Bifidus Available in Sainsburies, Waitrose some Tesco's and many small shops. They have a very useful website at www.woodlands-park.co.uk
U.S. - Vermont Butterworks Farm - Their "organic Nonfat Yogurt 32 oz." contains acidophilus bulgaricus, and s. thermophilus.

Goat Yoghurt Starter

Many people, especially children cannot tolerate the casein that is in cows milk. However after some healing has taken place on the SCD™ many find that they are no longer sensitive to it. Goats milk casein is very different and those with a sensitivity to cows milk often find that it agrees with them.

The starters listed above are based on cows milk and of course contain cows milk casein and other cows milk components. If they are used to ferment goats milk then the final yoghurt will also contain a small amount of these components. As the reason for using goats milk is to avoid these even in small amounts you may wish to use a culture based on goats milk or a dairy free starter, here are some suggestions:-

ProGurt™ Dairy Free Yogurt Starter from Gi Pro Health

ProGurt™ is a dairy-free yogurt starter which contains our three strains. It can be used to culture any type of milk, including cow, goat, soy, nut, and coconut milk. A 1/4 teaspoon produces two quarts of yogurt and a 24gm bottle can make up to 120 quarts of yogurt. It must be refrigerated and Gi Pro Health ship it to you with ice packs.

Second Generation yogurt:This is a method of greatly diluting the cows milk content of our goat yoghurt. Many who can't tolerate cow yoghurt have great success with this.

Use a cow starter to ferment some goat milk for 24 hours(do not eat this batch)
Use this resulting goat yoghurt as a starter to ferment for 24 hours the second batch of goat milk of which we will eat.

Note: Do not use the eating batches to ferment other batches or undesirable strains will creep in or the existing bacteria can mutate.