Articles by Brian Berk

Tomas Vera, regional director for Europe and the Americas for MADCAP, a product developed by Contec Group, a New Zealand-based company that designs, builds, and delivers smart supply chain technology for the global dairy industry, joins us for Episode 30 of the “Let’s Talk Dairy” podcast to talk about dairy logistics.

Dairy processors’ sustainability goals require many aspects, as are discussed throughout this issue. One important stop on the path to climate and carbon neutrality is sustainable packaging. 

The sustainability finish line has been set: climate and carbon neutrality. The end zone seems to be within reach. The California dairy sector is on target to reach its methane-reduction goals and ultimately reach climate neutrality by 2030.

Last month in this column, I discussed how I believe concerns about milk-consumption declines are overblown. Although consumption has dropped since 1945 — a much different time — other segments of dairy have picked up the slack. 

Julian Stauffer, CEO of Waldner North America and Surdry North America, joins us for Episode 29 of the “Let’s Talk Dairy” podcast. 

Anyone thinking butter is just another dairy product should look no further than South Korean boy band BTS, which just two years ago released a song simply titled “Butter,” which includes the lyrics, “Smooth like butter, pull you in like no other.” 

In rural Ohio, equidistant from Cleveland and Pittsburgh, lies America’s oldest family-owned butter and cheese creamery. A fifth generation operates 129-year-old Minerva Dairy today, with a sixth generation on the way.

Prior to joining Dairy Foods one year ago, I served as editor-in-chief of a music instrument magazine. The industry had been steadily strumming along, pun intended, for years, until a June 22, 2017 Washington Post article, titled: “Why my guitar gently weeps. The slow, secret death of the six-string electric. And why you should care.”

In the juice category, a majority of subcategories experienced a drop in unit sales, consistent with many other dairy categories, according to data from Chicago-based research firm Circana (formerly IRI and NPD) for the 52 weeks ending March 26. 

Keith Schuman, business unit lead at Schuman Cheese, Fairfield, N.J., joins us for Episode 28 of the “Let’s Talk Dairy” podcast to talk about animal-free dairy.