The California Milk Advisory Board is sponsoring a float in the annual New Year’s Day Rose Parade in Pasadena, Calif.  The “Adventures in Real Food” float uses flowers, animation, music and young California dairy leaders to celebrate Real California Milk.

Keeping with the parade’s “Find Your Adventure” theme, the CMAB’s float recognizes that culinary adventures start with dairy – from the cheese that tops our favorite pizza pies to the ice cream that turns a banana into a celebration – all provided through the state’s more than 1,400 dairy farm families.

“The Rose Parade is a California icon that dates back more than 100 years, with a history as rich as California’s 200-year-old dairy tradition,” said John Talbot, CEO of California Milk Advisory Board. “What better way to showcase the milk and dairy products that make California the number one dairy state while aligning with our new ‘Return to Real’ ad campaign in support of Real California dairy foods and the dairy farmers who help bring them to the table.”

The “Adventures in Real Food” float will show how consumers can find adventure on their plate with an exciting meal or by being outdoors with the people and foods they love.

The float will feature a flowing river of milk rapids cascading over California’s rolling hills and valleys. Float riders will maneuver these rapids with ease by rafting atop a buttery grilled cheese sandwich; boating aboard a baked potato topped with butter and sour cream; and riding on a pizza pie paddleboard oozing with Mozzarella and Provolone cheeses.

At the back of the float, a premium Cheddar cheese wheel represents the warm California sun. At the front of the float will be a banana split “satellite” unit featuring two scoops of ice cream with a cherry on top. A bowl of yogurt and a variety of cheeses and butter complete the scene.

Float riders will represent some of the “Real People” essential to the dairy industry and who make California the Land of Milk & Sunny – including young dairy leaders from the Future Farmers of America, California Holstein Association, junior members of the California Jersey Cattle Association and California Dairy Princess ambassadors.