Beyond milk

An article in the Wall Street Journal on 1 November offered some great insights into shifts in US beverage consumption patterns, especially milk.

According to Dairy Management Inc …

• 94% of US households stock milk.

• 2018 consumption totalled 3.5 billion gallons, 13.25 billion litres.

• That’s 9% less than in 2014, a drop of 330 million gallons, 1.25 billion litres.

• Plant-based milks have only gained 60 million gallons of that, 225 million litres.

• “We’re losing over 50% to bottled water … No 2 is ready-to-drink coffee.”

• Eating less breakfast cereals accounts for 25% of milk’s decline.

• In the past year, whole milk sales are up 2.5%, while low fat milks are down 4.4%.

According to IRI research, the leading brands by market share are:

Fairlife sales have now risen to $450 million.