Where do we draw the line when it comes to dairy foods enhancements? When is too much, really too much?Is adding vitamins to an artificially sweetened carbonated soft drink responsible product development?   These questions are being asked because functional foods have entered the mainstream. The good news is that for dairy formulators, the opportunities to add functional ingredients are more expansive than ever.

It happened last week at my sons’ Bitty Basketball All Star games. A mom and I started talking about food and nutrition, and when she learned what I do, she pulled out her list of questions. The funny thing was that it probably did not matter what I said, she had her opinions, and was looking for validation . . . not for the scientific truth.

Orange juice, a.k.a. OJ, has long been a staple in most consumers’ homes, and a product many fluid milk dairies process and package, too. Though OJ is not going away, it is losing refrigerated shelf space to juices made from one or more so-called super fruits.

Complex distribution systems and lengthy product shelf lives need not concern dairy processors who avoid ingredients that some consumers perceive as being fake, artificial, too chemical sounding, etc. That’s because there are a variety of natural ingredients capable of stabilizing and emulsifying dairy foods without raising the eyebrows of even the most discerning consumers.

Live and active yogurt, in all its many forms-cup, drink, tube and even frozen-continues to be the glitz and glamour of the cultured dairy products category. Product developers and marketers both appreciate the versatility yogurt provides in terms of innovation, as well as the good-for-you reputation it has with consumers.

You have read it here before: fluid milk processors are very well suited to produce some of the highest-quality iced tea drinks around. There’s something important for dairies to know-the iced tea category has become extremely competitive, as tea has a healthful halo that more and more consumers are becoming aware of.

When you visit SIAL, a world of flavor comes to you. This international showcase of fresh and packaged food products is where trends are confirmed when buyers place orders for retail and foodservice venues around the world.

Have you ever noticed how Taco Bell has only about 15 fillings or toppings and a half dozen or so carriers, but somehow manages to mix and match these ingredients to offer a new menu item to customers on a regular basis?

Ice cream manufacturers are not too different.

As happens every January, the media spends a great deal of time discussing diet and nutrition. Excitingly for omega-3 ingredient suppliers, the January 2nd edition of USA Today stated, “there’s no doubt what one of 2007’s hottest food additives will be: omega-3.”

Initiated in 1916, the Collegiate Dairy Products Evaluation Contest has had a phenomenal record of growth and industry participation since its inception. Many of today’s dairy industry leaders started out as contest participants . . . and winners.