Dairy Foods presents its 2023 State of the Industry report.
Inflation remains a key dairy trend
Welcome to State of the Industry
Dairy Foods presents its 2024 State of the Industry report.
“With great power comes great responsibility.” This phrase, first uttered by Uncle Ben to Spider-Man in a comic book, has been repeated nearly every year in some phrase or form of pop culture.
The phrase can also apply to the dairy industry. Dairy processors have great power to produce nutritious foods and beverages that consumers love, while striving to make a profit. In addition to being a major source of the world’s food consumption, dairy processors are pressed to create their products and packaging sustainably.
Just like the changing seasons and catastrophic weather events like Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, the dairy industry has experienced torrential downpour, cloudy days as well as warm and hot temperatures and sunny skies. And just as summer fades into fall, there’s still above normal temperatures to go along with a chill in the air and falling leaves.
The dairy industry also has had to weather plenty of changes and challenges. Some categories that may have experienced small revenue increases found their volume decreasing or vice versa. And we’ll see in this report how dairy products like fluid milk are increasingly being used in higher ticket items like premium cheese, which fetches a much higher price than a gallon of milk.
Be sure to check out how the dairy industry in faring in our eight State of the Industry categories: milk, ice cream and frozen novelties, cheese, yogurt and cultured dairy, butter, nondairy beverages, ingredients and exports. There’s also data/charts from market research firm Circana, which demonstrates the reach of respective categories. Some categories are shining brightly. For example, cottage cheese is eclipsing many categories when it comes to year-over-year (YoY) dollar sales growth. In U.S. multi-outlets and convenience stores for the 52 weeks ending Aug. 11, cottage cheese sales rose 16% to $1.6 billion.
A double-digit 16% YoY gain in any dairy industry category is huge. Could this lift be due to creative recipes presented by TikTok influencers utilizing cottage cheese as a main ingredient? What do analysts say about cottage cheese, yogurt and other cultured dairy products taking the market by storm? Turn to our Cultured Dairy report for trends, products and more. DF
The outlook for U.S. dairy products in 2025 varies by product. The two exports with the most-clear trajectories are cheese and skim powders (nonfat dry milk (NFDM)/skim milk powder (SMP). Available supply in the U.S. looks like it will be the main drivers for cheese and NFDM/SMP, while the other products will be driven by a combination of the other factors.
Like a powerful blizzard blasting the landscape, health and wellness is socking it to the dairy ingredients’ sector. But rather than snow, ice and high winds pelting consumers, shoppers are facing a deluge of such positive elements as products that are low in sugar, high in protein, and those that contain prebiotics and probiotics.
Sponsored by IFPC.
The good news is that the butter/margarine/
spreads category saw growth in the 52-week period ending Aug. 11, according to data from Chicago-based market research firm Circana. Dollar sales ticked higher by 1% year over year (YoY) to $7.3 billion, with unit sales increasing the same 1% figure to 1.6 billion.
Like several other categories, overall, the skies are cloudy for non-dairy beverages, but with little rain predicted. Sales in the vast category are mixed year-over-year (YoY), but there are plenty signs of strength. Declining subcategories certainly did not take it on the chin, perhaps a good sign for the industry.
Sponsored by Cargill.
The magnanimous cultured dairy category — comprising such diverse segments as cottage cheese, yogurt, drinkable yogurt, kefir, sour cream, cream cheese and refrigerated dips — is like a clear-blue summer sky with resurging, in some cases, double-digit growth that is “eclipsing” much of the dairy industry.
Sponsored by CEM.
When exploring the State of the Industry of cheese, it’s “summer lovin’” for the $68.1 billion cheese category, which has been bolstered by strengthened per capita income, enabling consumers to “trade up” for more artisanal premium cheese.
Sponsored by Nercon.
Overall, ice cream/sherbet sales rose by 3% year over (YoY) to $8.6 billion for the 52 weeks ending Aug. 11, according to Chicago-based market research firm Circana. Unit sales picked up 0.5% YoY to 1.84 billion. Frozen novelty sales ticked slightly higher by 1% YoY to $8.74 billion, while unit sales for the period ending Aug. 11 declined by a small 0.2% to 1.86 billion.
Sponsored by Nelson- Jameson.
Market research firm Circana reports that in U.S. multi-outlets and convenience stores for the 52 weeks ending Aug. 11, the overall milk category, comprising refrigerated milk, refrigerated alternative milk, “all other” refrigerated milk and non-dairy refrigerated milk, notched $19.6 billion in dollar sales at a slight 1.2% decrease over the prior year. In the “all other” refrigerated milk segment, however, it was near-perfect fall sunshine with 21.2% growth and $252 million in sales.
Opening image courtesy of Ig0rZh / iStock / Getty Images Plus.
