Almost two decades ago, marketing companies, news outlets and market research firms across the country issued a warning to American marketers and employers: The oldest millennials soon would be coming of age, and the rest of us had better prepare for it.

In recent years, dairy alternatives have been popping up seemingly everywhere. These dairy wannabees typically do not come close, however, to matching dairy's unique nutritional profile and taste.

In my December column, I pointed to two areas of particular consumer interest, products that boost immune health and products that target the microbiome, that will spell innovation opportunity for dairy processors in 2021. Those areas of interest are huge, but they are not the only trends that bode well for dairy in the New Year.

As I write this column, 2020 is not quite over, although I suspect most folks are anxiously counting the days until it is.

Each year, Dairy Foods takes a deep dive into trends (both current and emerging), as well as opportunities and challenges, within a variety of dairy-product and related segments. The result is our annual State of the Industry report, published in our November issue.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit back in March, life for most Americans took a sharp detour from business as usual. Among other practices, the "new normal" brought with it the social distancing, mask wearing and sharp increase in at-home food preparation that continue to this day.

Toward the end of 2018, I penned a column defending Dairy Foods' coverage of the plant-based dairy-alternative space. The column was in response to reader feedback suggesting such coverage was harming dairy farmers and the dairy processing industry.

In June, Dairy Foods sadly lost its long-time publisher, Tom Imbordino. He died unexpectedly at the age of 59.

My daughter is a third grade teacher in Raleigh, N.C. Her school, like most others across the country, was forced to close amid the coronavirus pandemic.

I'm writing this column in mid-April, long before the print version of this issue will be readied for mailing (one of the downsides of deadlines). And as I write, the dairy supply chain is reeling from an abundance of negative impacts associated with the coronavirus pandemic.