Incremental dairy sales grew by more than 7 billion lb. for the 12 months ending in March 2011. High world dairy prices may be having some impact on sales, however, as incremental sales ending in February 2011 were up 7.8 billion lb.
Nevertheless, incremental cheese sales were up 453 million lb. for the 12 months ending in April, reports Tom Gallagher, CEO of Dairy Management, Inc. (DMI)
The numbers shatter the myth that domestic dairy sales have stalled, he says, since 60% of cheese sale increases have come from U.S. consumption.
A full 25% of all cheese is sold on pizza, and that growth has continued for the past 24 months, he says. DMI has invested some $14 million for three years through 2012 with its strategic partners such as Domino’s Pizza. These partners, in turn, have invested more than $100 million in marketing efforts.
