Cultured Club
by Shonda Talerico Dudlicek
Branded cultured products and cheese saw significant gains
in the past year.
The widespread popularity of Hispanic foods may explain why consumers are buying more cheese, sour cream and dip. Or maybe the weight-conscious among them are choosing diet staples such as yogurt and cottage cheese.
Most brands held onto their top spots from the previous year,
except in cottage cheese, in which Knudsen® took the highest
ranking among name brands. Knudsen replaced Breakstone® in
cottage cheese from the previous year; both brands are in the Kraft family.
Cacique, a California company known for its Mexican cheese,
broke into the top 10 list of natural cheese brands, edging out Polly-O®,
an Italian cheese brand held by Kraft. Private label natural cheese saw a 14.1
percent increase in sales over 2002, and the total category experienced an 11.2
increase.
Among the top 10 natural shredded cheese brands,
Borden observed a 13.4 percent increase, while Sargento® ChefStyle
saw a 15 percent drop. The category itself posted modest gains.
The introduction of the Dreyer’s®/Edy’s®
Grand Light® brand in limited test markets proved popular
enough to warrant the brand’s entry on the top 10 ice cream brands.
In the frozen novelties arena, Dreyer’s/Edy’s showed
an almost 60 percent gain in sales over the previous year. Silhouette’s
Skinny Cow brand saw a 14.1 percent increase, moving up to the No. 3 spot. Displacing
the Dole® Fruit and Juice brand were the Carvel and Fudgsicle® brands.
In the yogurt and yogurt drink category, brands grew by nearly
8 percent, with Yoplait® and Dannon® Light ‘n
Fit posting 12.8 and 9.6 percent gains, respectively. Dannon
la Crème made the top 10 with a nearly 9 percent
increase in sales over the previous year.
The pudding/mousse/gelatin and parfait category saw a
4.2 percent increase, though Hershey’s® had a surge of nearly 77 percent over the
previous year. The Jolly Rancher® and Lakeview Farms brands lost their spots among the top 10.
previous year. The Jolly Rancher® and Lakeview Farms brands lost their spots among the top 10.
Cottage cheese brands showed a less than 1 percent
decrease, but the Hood® brand’s appearance on the list marked an 80 percent
increase in sales. The Prairie Farms® brand also posted double-digit gains, and both Hood and
Prairie Farms knocked the Kemps® brand from the top 10 tally.
In sour cream, both the Daisy® and Tillamook® brands
netted a 17.6 percent sales gain, unseating Meadow Gold from the list.
The dip brand category made way for the Yoders brand
with a modest increase, leaving Rod’s® to dip below the top 10 ranking.
Flavored milk/eggnog/buttermilk brands posted a gain
of less than 1 percent, with Garelick Farms® (up 19.5 percent) and Hershey’s (up 30.5
percent) replacing Hiland and Barbers on the list.
Butter as a category lost ground with a 6.2 percent drop in
sales.
Chicago-based Information Resources Inc. did not report data
for whole, skim or lowfat milk.
A freelance writer and editor based in the Chicago area, Shonda Talerico
Dudlicek is a former managing editor of Dairy Field magazine.
| Leading Brands by Category | |
| Flavored Milk/Eggnog/Buttermilk | Nestlé Nesquik |
| Natural Cheese | Kraft |
| Natural Shredded Cheese | Kraft |
| American Cheese | Kraft Singles |
| Ice Cream | Breyers |
| Frozen Novelties | Klondike |
| Pudding/Mousse/Gelatin/Parfaits | Jell-O |
| Yogurt/Yogurt Drinks | Yoplait |
| Butter | Land O’Lakes |
| Cottage Cheese | Knudsen |
| Sour Cream | Breakstone |
| Dip | T. Marzetti |
Top Flavored Milk/Eggnog/Buttermilk Brands VIEW TABLE
Top Natural Cheese Brands VIEW TABLE
Top Natural Shredded Cheese Brands VIEW TABLE
Top American Cheese Brands VIEW TABLE
Top Ice Cream/Sherbet Brands VIEW TABLE
Top Frozen Novelties Brands VIEW TABLE
Top Pudding/Mousse/Gelatin/Parfait Brand VIEW TABLE
