Thanks to the boost in supply of organic and natural products, including dairy, and increased demand for such products on the part of consumers, the organic and natural market continues to grow. Tied to this growth is a clean-label movement that doesn't appear to be waning anytime soon.
When Lifeway Foods Inc. purchased the former Golden Guernsey fluid milk plant in Waukesha, Wis., at a bankruptcy auction in 2013, it faced an uphill battle in readying it for production of the company’s signature 32-ounce kefir line. Although the 157,000-square-foot, 60-plus-year-old facility had “good bones,” its former tenant had shut down very quickly with no exit plan.
Julie's Organic, Eugene, Ore., introduced two ice cream bars, mint chip and mixed berry chip, and expanded its ice cream sandwich line with a fudge swirl 100-calorie square.
Minneapolis-based JonnyPops expanded beyond its classic fruit ice cream pops line with the launch of the "Delight" line. The new pops feature five creamy flavors, including dark chocolate & cream, vanilla mint chocolate & cream and root beer float & cream.
Alden’s Organic, Eugene, Ore., introduced five organic frozen novelties to its line: orange cream bars, double fudge bars and three ice cream sandwiches.
Hudsonville Ice Cream is a Midwest-crafted creamery based in Holland, Mich. The company produces more than 50 flavors of ice cream, including new creamery blend vanilla and limited-edition flavors chocolate raspberry indulgence and Belgian cookie butter.
Dunkin’ Donuts, Canton, Mass., added a cookies & cream flavor to its bottled, ready-to-drink iced coffee beverages produced and distributed by The Coca-Cola Co., Atlanta.
Cabot Creamery, Waitsfield, Vt., added six shredded cheese varieties to its portfolio, including bacon cheddar, mac & cheese, rustic pizza and 5 cheese Italian.
The picture appears to be a little less than rosy for the refrigerated juices/drinks category. For the 52 weeks ending March 25, 2018, dollar sales in the category fell 1.1% to $6.6 billion, while unit sales declined by 2.1% to 2.2 billion, according to data from Chicago-based market research firm IRI.
Gen Z will soon be a powerful consumer force. Dairy processors that focus on ‘real’ food and beverages could win them over.
June 11, 2018
Generation Z has the potential to take demand for "real" unadulterated food to new heights, according to "Make it happen for Gen Z," a 2018 report from the NPD Group, Port Washington, N.Y.
What type of milk is best? Is fat in or out, and what about sugar? These are questions swirling in the minds of many consumers. By providing people with information about the fat, sugar and calories in cow"s milk options in the marketplace, the dairy community can help people choose the right dairy foods to meet their needs.
Skim through any list of food and beverage megatrends and you’ll likely run across a mention of 1) probiotics, 2) digestive health, 3) the human microbiome or 4) some combination thereof. That's because the more consumers learn about how the goings-on in their guts reverberate throughout their bodies, the more they want to know about the "good gut bugs" at the center of it all.
Anti-inflammatory diets are trendy, and some of my friends are avoiding dairy because they've heard that it causes inflammation. According to Greg Miller, chief science officer for National Dairy Council, "The current scientific evidence suggests that the opposite may be true."
Using low heat in addition to ultrasound waves, thermosonication is a viable technique that can inactivate pathogenic microorganisms and increase shelf life.
The search for new alternatives for pasteurizing and processing milk has led food scientists and technologists to use preservation and processing factors other than heat to ensure microbiological safety and to preserve the quality characteristics of the food.
The importance of environmental swabbing in dairy operations cannot be overstated. Some reasons are rather obvious, while others may not be so. But the responsibility falls on all food and beverage manufacturing companies to ensure that public safety, health and trust are not compromised in any way.
What are the top four indicators we should be watching to help us understand and anticipate changes in dairy prices? With the amount of data and commentary on the dairy markets, it's easy to get overwhelmed or become distracted from the big underlying drivers. It was hard to whittle the list down to just four, but here they are.