Dairy Foods eMagazine

Recognizing that March is “Women's History Month,” Dairy Foods, for the third consecutive year, proudly recognizes the outstanding achievements women have made within the multifaceted dairy industry. 

As spring is finally arriving, the dairy industry can look forward to heading to Madison, Wis., for CheeseCon, set to take place from April 15 to 17 at the Alliant Energy Center.

During the past several years, the phrase “a win is a win” has been uttered by many athletes, often in reference to winning a game or a match without a dominant performance. The phrase can be aptly applied to the overall frozen novelty category. 

We are setting up for an interesting and potentially volatile dairy market in 2025. 

After a four-year hiatus, the second Trump administration has hit the ground running, teeing up several proposed policy changes that could impact the dairy industry.

In the last two decades, an emerging body of research has mounted showing a link between dairy foods like milk, yogurt, and cheese — at a variety of fat levels — and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). 

With 6.45 million metric tons (MT) of cheese production in 2023, the U.S. cheese market is projected for a 4.64% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) and a business of almost $56 billion by 2029. 

In addition to making seven varieties of spicy, hot cheddar cheeses such as Carolina Reaper and Scorpion, central Wisconsin-based Nasonville Dairy, a third-generation, medium-sized cheese processor, is “hot” for handcrafting 42 varieties of premium cheese, including Cheddar, Colby, along with many flavored cheeses like Blue Marble Jack, Garlic & Herb, and Horseradish.

The importance of dairy consumption during childhood has been in the press for years. Ongoing research is revealing that the need begins before birth at conception. While in the womb, a mother’s nutritional state and lifestyle habits help shape the child’s future health. 

The dairy industry always takes on its fair share of competition. Whether it is plant-based products, marketing campaigns claiming dairy is “unhealthy,” H5N1 bird flu, labor challenges, and more, dairy is really holding up well.

New ingredients from Flavorchem, IFF, and Nelson-Jameson.

Sugar reduction is not only top of mind for many consumers, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well. In January, the FDA proposed a front-of-package (FOP) nutrition label for most packaged foods. 

New equipment from Coperion, Hart Design & Manufacturing, and Hydro-Thermal 

As input and labor costs remain high, dairy processors are looking to optimize production efficiency and cut costs.

Manufacturing 42 varieties of premium cheese in the heart of America’s Dairyland not only takes a ton of high-quality raw milk — 1.8 million pounds a day, or 534 million pounds annually, to be exact, in the case of Marshfield, Wis.-based Nasonville Dairy.