Dairy demands are as diverse as the consumers themselves, with Innova Market Insights reporting that attitudes and opinions can vary widely from one category to the other. For example, milk and yogurt purchasing is driven largely by everyday nutrition needs, but taste is king in cheese choices.

Notably, almost half of yogurt consumers prefer products to have some type of health benefit. Last month, Kerry spotlighted the rise of immune positionings in the yogurt arena. Probiotics remain a stalwart for gut health, with postbiotics also starting to break into the scene. 

Meanwhile, Chobani recently eliminated the sugar in milk to create its better-for-you yogurt concept.

Natural choices gain ground
The market researcher reports that rather than being driven by health positionings, cheese purchases are often influenced by messages related to nature and tradition. 

For milk shoppers, traceability and sustainable farming methods are also increasingly important. This taps into Innova Market Insights’ Top Trend for 2021 of “Transparency Triumphs.” Notably, six in ten global consumers are interested in learning more about wher foods come from. 

The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the reasons behind this growing interest in naturalness and traceability, with the market researcher anticipating this will be important for dairy innovators going forward.

Historical behaviors drive purchases
The popularity of dairy varies widely in different parts of the world, notes Innova Market Insights. Specifically, there is a marked divide between Europe – a region of dairy lovers – and Asia, wher there is much less of a tradition of consumption.

“This is reflected in purchasing,” says Lu Ann Williams, global insights director at Innova Market Insights. “For example, nine out of ten Russian consumers see cheese as a typical grocery purchase, in contrast to just one in ten in China.”

However, Asians are far more likely than Western consumers to be increasing their dairy intakes. Notably, this pertains to 42 percent of consumers in China and Vietnam but just 13-14 percent in France and Germany. 

Although uptake remains lower in Asia, there is hope for wider interest and more mainstream dairy purchasing in the future, notes the market researcher. There is hope for wider interest in dairy from Asian consumers in the future. 

Starting the day right
Differing habits are also reflected in the data showing which dairy products go with various eating occasions. Breakfast is particularly important for milk and yogurt consumption, but cheese use is more evenly spread across main meals. 

once more, there are notable regional trends. Latin Americans over-index on the use of dairy products at the breakfast table, while Scandinavians have a penchant for yogurt at breakfast time. In France and Turkey, yogurt is more likely to find a place at the lunch or dinner table.

Plant-based pressure
Looking ahead, Innova Market Insights flags that growing competition from plant-based alternatives will increase pressure on the dairy industry to understand consumers’ needs and target them accordingly.

For example, Laïta Nutrition is increasing its focus on plant-based ingredients, with the nutrition division of the Laïta dairy cooperative acknowledging that eating habits are changing. 

Meanwhile, Time-Travelling Milkman recently scaled up its plant-based fat ingredient for creamier, healthier dairy alternatives following new funding from Oost NL and SHIFT Invest.