Ice cream sales tick up slightly, while those of frozen novelties and frozen yogurt are dropping.

More milk is flowing toward cheese plants than most people would have expected for the first full week of January. And, increased cheese imports are challenging domestic cheese production.  

Shredded cheese sales are up in both natural and processed cheese categories. Chunks and sliced cheese sales also increase in the natural category.

It appears that consumers want to have their tea and coffee — and drink it too. The numbers are looking good for makers of refrigerated and ready-to-drink tea and coffee.

The overall frozen desserts and whip toppings category saw dollar and units sales down, with puddings and cheesecakes particularly struggling.

Ice cream sales see minimal growth, while sherbet and novelty sales trend downward.

Milk production has slowed across much of the country. The combination of hot weather and typical seasonal declines is slowing availability of manufacturing milk.

National Dairy Month-themed ads were in abundance this survey period. A number of ads offered dairy products as “2 for the price of 1” specials.

Butter operators churned at mostly steady rates. Cheese production is mostly steady this week with many plants operating full schedules. As for milk, the USDA says production is steady to higher in the Midwest, steady in the Northeast and Pacific Northwest, and steady to declining in California.

The vegetable juice/cocktail segment’s dollar and unit sales rise above the rest, while cranberry and orange juice sales struggle. Meanwhile, blended juices are all the rage.