Dairy Foods Columnists - Articles

Wisconsin’s Turbo program helps to transfer dairy technology from academia to the private sector

A new program from the University of Wisconsin is designed to help established dairy processors and start-up businesses anywhere in the United States take to market new ideas for dairy foods and beverages.

James Carper

May 4, 2014

Are you ready for cotton candy-flavored processed cheese? If that’s not your taste, how about green apple, banana or chocolate flavors?

Food processors look for natural cheese

It is estimated that 70% of all cheese used in processing channels is natural. The key varieties are Cheddar, mozzarella, cream cheese and hard Italian cheeses.

John A. Lucey Ph.D., Director, Center for Dairy Research

April 13, 2014

Cheese usage today falls into three categories — industrial, retail and foodservice.

EPA’s next big measurement program

Clay Detlefsen

April 12, 2014

EPA’s next big measurement program uses energy performance indicators in a program created by Duke University. Soon you will be able to compare your plant to the overall dairy industry’s performance. EPA will recognize the top 25% of participating dairy plants with its Energy Star Certification.

Formulating for millennials and baby boomers

But they look at food through different lenses. Millennials are all about knowing the origin of foods and eating all-natural foods. Boomers want to prevent illness and seek foods that keep them healthy and active into retirement.

Karen Giles-Smith MS, RD

April 12, 2014

In terms of influence in the market, baby boomers and millennials are running the show. To which generation should the dairy industry cater? The best answer may be: both. Here’s why.

Food safety

FSMA Timetable Reset: Court Orders & Re-Writes

Use this 3-year enforcement timeline when planning for employee training and compliance with the Food Safety Modernization Act.

Allen Sayler

April 11, 2014

"Are we there yet?” Many senior plant and dairy corporate leaders are wondering when the journey will end regarding full implementation of the Food and Drug Administration’s Food Safety Modernization Act.

Working with cocoa in ice cream

To formulate a quality product, you must understand the properties and attributes of cocoa and chocolate. Then you can achieve the desired flavor, body, texture and color.

Bruce Tharp

Steven Young

April 8, 2014

Chocolate is second only to vanilla as the most popular ice cream flavor in the United States. Therefore, it is a major component of the product portfolios of most ice cream companies, representing on average of 8% to 10% of the volume of a typical portfolio.

Gazing into the dairy industry's crystal ball

The FDA’s new label changes, two conferences in a week and a trip through a milk plant have me thinking about the future of the dairy industry.

James Carper

April 5, 2014

In late February, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration put out for comment its suggestions to redo the Nutrition Facts label on food packages.

Off-the-shelf ideas to extend shelf life

Jayne Randolph

March 11, 2014

A thorough regimen of inspecting, sampling and testing in your milk plant can be an effective means of achieving a longer shelf life for the dairy products you process.

Hubba, hubba

The Devil or Angel approach to advertising milk – sex or wholesomeness

MilkPEP shaves its milk mustache, fairlife goes sexy and Umpqua stays wholesome.

James Carper

March 10, 2014

A milk processor channels pin-up models in its ad campaign for a high-protein milk. Meanwhile, the national marketing group MilkPEP has stopped asking “got milk?” in favor of a new campaign that touts the beverage’s protein content.

The java script

Developing RTD tea and coffee

Ready-to-drink coffee and tea products create value and convenience as a cheaper and quicker alternative to stopping at a coffee or tea chain.

Kimberly Decker

March 9, 2014

Dairy processors have the processing equipment and the retail relationships so it makes sense to capitalize on the popularity of ready-to-drink coffee and tea beverages. Here’s what you need to know about developing these RTD drinks.