UK launches £1million milk promotion campaign

The ‘Milk Your Moments’ campaign is funded by AHDB, Dairy UK, Defra, Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive to address the fall in milk sales due to the closure of foodservice caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

It is designed to inspire moments of connection as people stay apart due to the virus pandemic, and also encourages better mental health as well.

Milk Your Moments wants to help celebrate the connections and times people share and encourages consumers to record their own moments to share with their friends on social media using the #MilkYourMoments hashtag. The campaign is also carrying out advertising on social media, billboards near supermarkets, on radio and television.

It has also teamed up with mental health charity Mind to highlight the importance of human connections and is encouraging open conversations with others to make a positive impact on people’s mental health. Mind (England and Wales) will work in partnership with SAMH (Scottish Association for Mental Health) in Scotland and Inspire in Northern Ireland to deliver the partnership, to cover all four nations of the UK.

Photo: Jan Willem Schouten

Farmers and consumers

Consumers are prompted to visit the Milk Your Moments website, which will generate a random ‘moment of inspiration’ and donate £1 to Mind as well as give them an opportunity to win a prize. However, it’s not just consumers that are being asked to join in the campaign as farmers are encouraged to join in the fun as well.

Dairy farmers are being asked to post photos from their daily work on social media to help connect the consumer to dairy production and further enhance the reputation of the dairy industry. Northern Ireland Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots has given his support to the UK-wide campaign that aims to encourage people to drink milk. The Minister recognises the damage coronavirus has done to the agricultural industry and especially to dairy production.

Minister Poots said: “Since the start of the Covid 19 pandemic, I have fought hard to secure financial support for the Northern Irish agri-food sector. Covid-19 has been very challenging for our agriculture sector, and in particular, our dedicated and hardworking dairy farmers.

“I am therefore very pleased that I have been able to secure funding for the dairy sector as part of the £25m received from our Executive. This will go some way to helping the sector be more sustainable in the longer term. I am very proud to support the Milk your Moments initiative and my department has contributed £20k to ensure that Northern Ireland’s dairy sector is also promoted.

“A very welcome campaign to help our dairy sector and enrich lives through online connections with those close friends and relatives who we haven’t been able to physically meet up or visit in the last couple of months,” he said.

Dr Judith Bryans, chief executive of Dairy UK said: “We’re delighted to be working alongside AHDB and the UK governments to promote dairy products.“Every day moments of human connection are especially important during this crisis. With this campaign we want to highlight the central and sometimes forgotten role that dairy plays as part of our everyday lives. We want to remind people of the importance of taking a moment to connect with each other while enjoying the foods they love, even if it is remotely.”

Christine Watts, AHDB’s chief marketing officer added: “This is a fantastic demonstration of what can be achieved when industry and government join together to meet a common challenge. We know that consumers love milk and the great taste of dairy, but because it’s such an integral part of our lives, consumers tend to take it for granted, in the same way we all tend to take our day to day relationships as a given.

“AHDB has been delivering a strong focus on the reputation of dairy for the last three years and this campaign will further deliver on the great work we have already begun.”