Welcome to the dairy case, a round-up of what’s new in products, companies and marketing. In this issue:Grocery Manufacturers Association, chocolate milk in LA schools, cheese recalls, International Dairy Research Consortium, Sartori Cheese, Yogurtini, Mikawaya ice cream,Global Dairy Congress andFriendship Dairy.


Welcome to Jim Carper's Dairy Case, a look at the new dairy products, companies and marketing efforts making the news.



Grocers association creates food additive database
TheGrocery Manufacturers Association(GMA) this week announced its International Food Additive Database designed to provide industry with easy access to accurate and current regulatory requirements on food additives in importing countries around the world.“The International Food Additive Database will be an invaluable tool in helping to expand export markets for U.S. specialty and processed food products,” said Pamela G. Bailey, GMA president and CEO.  She said the database will help U.S. exporters ensure the products they are shipping comply with the food additive standards and regulatory requirements in the export market. By establishing a single global source of food additive standards, it will also help U.S. federal trade officials prevent and eliminate trade barriers to U.S. food products, Bailey said.The database was publicly launched during the Codex Committee on Food Additives in China, in March of this year and can be accessed atfoodadditvedatabase.com.

Flavored milk to be drained from Los Angeles schools
Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution claimed victory in its campaign to ban chocolate and flavored milk in Los Angeles-area schools. Oliver battled the Los Angeles Unified School District in his ABC television series. "With flavored milk, kids are getting loads of sugar and other food additives they simply don't need to grow and learn," Oliver said. "In the Food Revolution the little battles set us up for the next win.  All these little battles count; they matter. It's not just milk. It's caring about what we feed kids 180 days a year."Oliver engineered a "Milk Day of Action" this week that involved like-minded parents and their children who staged assemblies, wrote letters to school officials, hung student-made posters marketing the benefits of unflavored milk and even donned white milk moustaches.
An editorial in the Los Angeles Timesstates: "The district offers orange juice at breakfast, a drink with close to the same amount of sugar as nonfat chocolate milk - and more than a standard soft drink. Meanwhile, the milk has four times as much protein as the juice. So why was flavored milk targeted and not orange juice? It's more about how people perceive certain foods than the reality. Let's face it, in the battle against the bulge, 'chocolate' and 'sweetened' are fightin' words."

Two companies recall cheese
One 8- to 9-pound wheel of Royal Blue Stilton cheese contained in a master case with batch code B038 has been recalled byAtalanta Corp.,Elizabeth, N.J. The product has the potential to be contaminated withListeria monocytogenes,an organism which can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Separately, New York State Agriculture Commissioner Darrel Aubertine warned consumers this week not to consume certain Queso Fresco Fresh Cheese made byQuesos CentroAmericano Corp., Freeport, N.Y., due to possibleStaphylococcus aureus contamination. The recalled cheese is sold in 5-pound foil tray packages with a label declaring a plant number of 36-9845 and a product lot code of 05/31/11 affixed to the bottom of the package.

Dairy groups form international research consortium
Six dairy organizations this week announced the formation of theInternational Dairy Research Consortiumfor Nutrition and Health, a new partnership to accelerate pre-competitive research on the nutrition and health benefits of dairy. The founding partners are the Centre National Interprofessionnel de l’Économie Laitière (France), Dairy Australia, Dairy Farmers of Canada, the Dairy Research Institute (United States), the Danish Dairy Research Foundation and the Dutch Dairy Association. Global Dairy Platform will serve as the secretariat.  The Consortium will advance dairy nutrition and health research by identifying common goals with the largest potential to increase dairy demand. It then will align the knowledge and resources needed to advance those research goals rapidly and for broadest application. Interest areas potentially include better understanding how major nutrients and other components in milk may provide benefits related to metabolic health and chronic diseases.  See more atthis website.

Sartori plays ball with Milwaukee baseball team
Plymouth, Wis., cheesemaker Sartori Cheesethis week became a sponsor of the Milwaukee Brewer Radio Network. The company will be promoting its Sartori Reserve line of artisan cheese in all Milwaukee Brewer radio broadcasts for the remainder of the season. The 30-second radio spots will air during each pitching change. The company will advertise its SarVecchio Parmesan and its so-called American Original BellaVitano.

Yogurt chain opens another franchise in Arizona
Yogurtiniopened a store in Glendale, Ariz. To celebrate the franchise expansion, the Arizona store will give free self-serve frozen yogurt on Saturday, June 18 from 4 to 8 p.m. Yogurtini also has stores in Missouri and Kansas.  Other franchises are under construction and development in Florida and Colorado. The foodservice concept allows customers to make their own frozen yogurt creation, creating blends and concoctions, just like a signature martini.  The company serves up to 16 rotating fat-free frozen yogurt flavors and more than 70 toppings. The yogurt contains live and active cultures approved by the National Yogurt Association.

Ice cream maker sponsors viral video contest
Mikawaya, the Los Angeles-based creator of Mochi ice Cream said that avid Deisenroth won its viral video song contest. The winning video, entitled "Candy Land Mikawaya Mochi," received nearly 3,100 votes and over 4,800 views. Deisenroth won a custom Mikawaya Mochi-branded Apple iTouch.The video contest, in which visitors posted homemade videos of themselves singing about the ice cream to the website, was decided by the greatest number of viewer votes.The intent of the contest was to increase fan interaction online and to further raise awareness of the product through a creative and fun avenue, both of which were highly successful.

Dairy people honored at international event
At the 5thGlobal Dairy Congress in St. Petersburg, Russia, the inaugural Zenith Dairy Awards were announced at a gala dinner at the Belosselsky-Belozersky Palace. In recognition of outstanding individual contributions to the world of dairy, the 2011 awards were presented to:
  • Tom Coley, former Head of the Global Dairy Strategic Business unit for Nestlé SA and Nestlé R&D Innovator Emeritus in 2010. In his distinguished career, he was also a Board member of the Dairy Partners of America joint venture with Fonterra in Latin America and a member of the International Dairy Federation Board.
  • Luc Morelon, former Senior Communications Director and External Public Relations Officer for Lactalis Group during a period of major expansion. He was previously Chairman of the European Dairy Association and is currently Chairman of the French Dairy Industry Federation as well as a member of the International Dairy Federation Board.
Zenith International chairman Richard Hall said “These new awards are for industry leaders who have made an exceptional contribution through long and committed service and who have really reached the zenith of achievement on behalf of the dairy sector. We are delighted to be able to honor two such inspirational and worthy recipients.” Zenith, a food and drink consultancy, organized the Global Dairy Congress.

Friendship cottage cheese receives packaging makeover
Friendship Dairies'iconic dove is more prominent on packages of its cottage cheese, giving the brand an unmistakable presence on shelf. The dairy processors says "the brand's smart, sassy personality has also made its way onto the new containers and lids as a way to share fun little facts about Friendship's simple, dairy fresh, flavorful, and heart-healthy options." Each of the nine varieties now has its own color to help shoppers find their favorite flavors. Among the varieties are 1% All Natural with Vitamin A Cottage Cheese and 1% All Natural with Vitamin A No Salt Added. TheDean Foodssubsidiary in Friendship, N.Y., also processes sour cream, farmer cheese and buttermilk.

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