Hopefully your summer travels find you in Chicago, host to this year’s IFT Annual Meeting & Food Expo. And, bring a healthy appetite, because the more than 1,000 exhibitors have been busy the past year developing innovations that are right on track with today’s trends.
Like
many Americans, I need a few cups of coffee in the morning. I’m OK with my home
brew. My husband, on the other hand, works in the Sears Tower and frequently
patronizes the many downtown coffeehouses. He seldom hesitates to inform me
that my cup of java just does not compare to the barista-made brew. (I use
premium beans, but there’s something about the coffeehouse process that results
in a better-tasting cup.)
Americans
are eating more cheese than ever before, with consumption showing no signs of
abating. In fact, according to data compiled by the Wisconsin Milk Marketing
Board, from 2005 to 2015, it is projected that, on average, every American will
be consuming an additional three pounds of cheese each year. That’s a lot of
cheese!
It
happened last week at my sons’ Bitty Basketball All Star games. A mom and I
started talking about food and nutrition, and when she learned what I do, she
pulled out her list of questions. The funny thing was that it probably did not
matter what I said, she had her opinions, and was looking for validation . . .
not for the scientific truth.
Orange
juice, a.k.a. OJ, has long been a staple in most consumers’ homes, and a
product many fluid milk dairies process and package, too. Though OJ is not
going away, it is losing refrigerated shelf space to juices made from one or
more so-called super fruits.
Complex
distribution systems and lengthy product shelf lives need not concern dairy
processors who avoid ingredients that some consumers perceive as being fake,
artificial, too chemical sounding, etc. That’s because there are a variety of
natural ingredients capable of stabilizing and emulsifying dairy foods without
raising the eyebrows of even the most discerning consumers.
Osteoporosis is characterized as the progressive loss of bone mass and
bone tissue deterioration, leading to skeletal weakness and an
increased risk for bone fractures. Approximately 10 million U.S. adults
aged 50 years and older suffer from osteoporosis while another 33 – 34
million have low bone mass and are at high risk for the disease.
McDonald’s has a Yogurt n’ Fruit Parfait . . . for a dollar. Airport kiosks around the country sell their own version for about five times that price. And, consumers buy them. Consumers recognize such products are a great way to get your 3-A-Day of Dairy with your 5-A-Day The Color Way . . . all-in-one.
Most consumers think of process cheese as orange American slices. But it may soon come in red, white and even blue shades as well as an entire melting pot of ethnic varieties. It might also be lower in sodium and fat. New Dairy Management Inc.-supported research in process cheese is aiding in the development of products that appeal to children and other demographics, and increase opportunities for use in healthy sandwiches, snacks and entrees.
RSS
