Will new initiatives raise dairy sales in North America?

A few years ago, Dairy Farmers of Canada launched what’s called the ‘Blue Cow’ logo to differentiate Canadian dairy products from imports, and building on that success, it has now launched a new, related, consumer rewards program.

Intended to have consumers choose

Canadian dairy products over imports and to choose them more often, the programme offers many loyalty rewards to those who sign up. These rewards include exclusive access to special offers, contests, recipes, nutritional information and ‘creative content’.

Dairy Farmers of Canada is also providing a new digital catalogue containing the thousands of Canadian dairy products on the market, called the Blue Cow Spotter. In addition, the ‘Blue Cow’ logo now features the words ‘More Goodness’, highlighting the nutritional benefits of milk and milk-based products.

“The Blue Cow logo has long represented Canadian dairy farmers’ commitment to milk quality, animal care and sustainability,” said Dairy Farmers of Canada’s chief marketing officer, Pamela Nalewajek, in a press release. “It is a powerful certification with 85% brand awareness amongst Canadians and a strong influence on consumer buying habits.”

Milk and dairy product consumption

As mentioned, dairy product demand in Canada has waned for at least the last 10 years, but different product categories are performing better than others.

The Canadian Dairy Commission produces monthly reports and recently published data for sales in December 2023 compared to December 2022.

Canadian consumption of cream and yogurt increased by 4.8% and 7.1%, respectively, over the previous year. “However, the consumption of milk, ice cream, cheese and butter decreased by 0.3%, 4.1%, 1.8% and 3.4% respectively,” states the Commission.

US initiatives

The US dairy industry launched a very successful ad campaign in 1993 using the slogan ‘Got Milk?’, which ran until 2014, and was then revived during the pandemic.

Several months ago, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced US$23 million in awards to support dairy businesses and producers​ under the Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives grant programme. This is renewal of the programme, which has “made significant impacts to the dairy industry…through the funding of 441 projects” since 2019, according to the USDA.

This year’s funds will be given to farmers and businesses in California, Tennessee, Vermont and Wisconsin for business plan development, marketing and branding, as well as increasing access to innovative production and processing techniques to support the development of value-added products.

One of these national product groups is yogurt and other cultured dairy products containing live and active bacteria cultures. This month, the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA, which represents the US dairy manufacturing and marketing industry) is re-launching its ‘Live & Active Cultures’ Seal logo. IDFA recently updated the policies around use of the Seal and is currently broadening its availability.