Has drinking milk gone out of fashion?
Is it a trend? According to USDA’s Economic Research Service, U.S. per capita availability—essentially the same thing as consumption—of beverage milk in 2008 was 20.7 gallons, unchanged from 2007. For some idea of the significance of that, per capita beverage milk consumption had declined for the previous ten years in a row, and almost every year since the mid-60’s. Since the peak consumption year of 1945, it’s fallen an astonishing 54%. So what could be happening to turn things around?For one thing, more adults are drinking milk—not by itself, but as part of a concoction with coffee and other flavorings. Jim Montel, executive vice president for strategic initiatives management with DMI, which carries out contract promotions for the National Dairy Board, says latte consumption has really taken off. “You see the Starbucks,” he says, “as well as the initiative we had with McDonald’s with their McCafe project; they brought in a little over a billion dollars’ worth of equipment to be able to serve hot and cold milk based dairy beverages.” Despite the recession, sales of the relatively pricey drinks at McDonald’s were up 39% last year, and sales at all QSRs [quick service restaurants] were up a healthy 13%.
Montel expects that growth to continue—particularly given the QSRs propensity to mimic each other’s successful ventures; Burger King recently introduced plans to introduce Seattle’s Best and other specialty coffees. “We see growth opportunities,” he says, “we stimulate the marketplace, and then we see competitive forces offer these kinds of products in a lot of distribution where consumers can get them.”
Montel says DMI is also trying to break down stereotypes of lactose intolerance, which causes many adults, particularly from some ethnic groups, to shy away from milk. He says DMI has supplied data to the National Institutes of Health that indicate lactose intolerance can be overcome through a gradual introduction of milk in the diet, a crucial way to get needed calcium. Alternatively, adults can turn to lactose-free milk; Montel says that project alone represents a potential 2.5 billion pound a year market opportunity.
But the leaders in milk drinking continue to be the kids; Montel sees gains there as well, and DMI promotions are playing a role. Among the speakers at a recent event at a public school in New York City were Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, the head of the dairy check off program and the head of nutrition programs for the city’s Department of Education…but the kids were probably a lot more impressed by Maurice Jones-Drew. The pint sized powerhouse running back for the National Football League’s Jacksonville Jaguars joined NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the others in kicking off a new round of the “Fuel Up to Play 60” program, which is supported by a $250 million, five-year commitment from the dairy check off. 60% of the nation’s 96,000 schools are enrolled in the program, through which grade school kids challenge their peers to consume dairy products, fruits and vegetables, and other healthful foods. Schools reinforce the message through curricula, promotional handouts, a web site and social media.
The kids, of course, prefer chocolate milk, and the industry may have to battle to keep it on the menu. With this year’s expected renewal of the Child Nutrition Act, the Obama administration intends to completely revamp the nutritional profile of what’s served in schools, and has set its sights on beverages and foods with added sugar. But Christine Bruhn, director of the Center for Consumer Research at the University of California-Davis, says it would be a big mistake to exclude chocolate milk. She says, “There was a study reported in the professional literature that indicated people who chose chocolate milk ended up having the same overall calories as people who chose other drinks, and they got the nutritional advantage dairy includes.” Bruhn says she encourages people whose kids prefer chocolate milk to give it to them, and adds, “The studies also illustrate that it’s very effective for athletes in that it gives them more energy and helps them rehydrate more quickly, and yields better performance. So, it’s a great thing.”
Bruhn has her own theories on why milk consumption has been declining. For one thing, she thinks it coincides with the increase in dining away from home—which could explain the stabilization in 2008, as the recession kicked in and families reduced their trips to restaurants. She says, “If you look at the composition of the diet at home versus away from home, there is significantly lower calcium intake when it’s away from home,” and notes it’s empowering to children to let them request chocolate milk with their meals. “The tendency has been for young people to have soda or even lemonade, and that just doesn’t deliver the nutrients people need,” she says. “In fact, I am really appalled that parents don’t remember that children need 3-4 glasses of milk or servings of dairy related high-calcium foods a day; some believe that if they get the glass in the morning, that’s going to be all right.”
She also believes children would drink more milk simply if there weren’t alternatives in the refrigerator. “Kids will come home from school—they’re hungry, they’re thirsty, they want something, they open up the fridge; they consume what’s there. So if you’ve got a great big bottle of soda or lemonade right in front of them, that’s what they’re going to reach for.” She says “modeling” can also provide an incentive; if they see Mom and Dad drinking milk, brother and sister will do likewise. “Indeed, we find strong correlation,” she says. “Parents who are having adequate calcium themselves are encouraging their kids to have adequate calcium as well.”
But Bruhn says over the long haul, boosting beverage milk consumption will be an uphill battle. The biggest conflict is with parents who decide it will be healthier to switch from soda pop to fruit juice. “Juice is good,” she says, “but 6 oz of juice, one small cup; that’s all you need.” The government’s dietary guidelines call for nine servings of fruits and vegetables a day, but that’s whole fruits and vegetables, not just the juice; besides, foregoing milk for fruit juice means kids are missing out on that crucial calcium and the other eight essential nutrients milk contains.
The nine nutrients are a big part of DMI’s promotions; the check off has funded sports nutrition work that indicates milk, with its nutrients and protein-to-carbohydrate, provides an excellent muscle recovery product for athletes. “We see a lot of growth opportunity,” says Montel, “because that’s a $17-20 billion category that milk has very little share of right now, and it continues to grow because of the growing interest in sports.”
He enthusiastically predicts per capita milk consumption will grow, but the growth will come from these various specialty products, not from jugs in the supermarket cooler. “Gallon milk sales at retail have a strong correlation with pricing,” Montel says, and obviously we can’t control pricing or the price of the commodity.” What they can do is target farmer check off dollars, combined with deep-pocketed and innovative partners like McDonald’s, and watch these new product categories grow.
Bookmark/Search this post with:
Comments :
Milk out of fashion
Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 04/09/2010 - 3:57pm.I consume organic dairy products, even though I have lactose intolerance. I take lactase enzymes with dairy. I do avoid enriched milk, because I'm allergic to the corn derivatives that are in the vitamins. And I avoid non-organic dairy products, because I don't want to consume the rBGH and GMOs, that I consider to be a health hazard. Many other people are allergic to corn, milk, are lactose intolerant, or avoiding rBGH and GMOs. People are paying more attention to just what is in our food supply, and we avoid what may be harmful to our health. The food industry has gotten a free ride with food hazards for far to long. We have wised up to unsafe practices, and many of us are just saying no to crap in the food supply.