By reinventing the dairy department in grocery stores and other retail outlets and connecting consumers with dairy health and wellness, unit sales could increase by up to 3% and dairy department sales by as much $1 billion.
That’s according to research from the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, which is supported and staffed by Dairy Management, Inc. (DMI) and funded largely by dairy checkoff dollars.
The research is part of a three-year effort of a coalition of DMI, The Dannon Company and Kraft Foods. It found that while consumers have a basic understanding that dairy products are healthy, they aren’t getting specific information about health and wellness benefits.
“Helping shoppers better understand the role dairy plays in living a healthier lifestyle for them and their families, and communicating consumer benefits within the [dairy] department, will allow retailers to better connect with their shoppers,” says Scott Dissinger, senior DMI VP of sales and marketing. That will allow retailers to become a trusted source for dairy-related health information.
Messaging includes healthy recipe ideas, assistance in assembling healthy meals with product bundles and creating special interest areas within the dairy department, such as healthy snacking.
To help retailers, the DMI-Dannon-Kraft coalition has produced a 24-page Dairy Department Reinvention Activation Guide that offers best practices approach for a successful reinvention project. The guide is being introduced this week to retailers at the massive Food Marketing Institute Show in Las Vegas.
