Outlook sweet for flavoured milk as popularity grows

Flavoured milk is set to grow by more than triple the rate of carbonated soft drinks between 2012 and 2015, a new report claims.

Flavoured milk will grow by 4.1% (compound annual rate) between 2012 and 2015, to 19.2 billion litres, according to forecasts in the sixth Tetra Pak Dairy Index report published this morning. In contrast, carbonated soft drinks are predicted to grow by just 1.3% over the same period.

“For consumers unwilling to compromise on taste, health or convenience, flavoured milk is proving an increasingly popular alternative to other beverages,” said Dennis Jönsson, president and CEO of Tetra Pak Group.

Flavoured milk is also tipped to grow at double the rate of ‘white milk’ between 2012 and 2015, offering opportunities to dairy companies to improve their profitability, Tetra Pak said. White milk is expected to grow by 1.7% between 2012 and 2015, to 219.5 billion litres in 2015.

White milk was increasingly commoditised and flavoured milk offered dairies the opportunity to provide value not only to consumers but also to their bottom line, added Jönsson. “With the right flavours, portion sizing and formulation, flavoured milk can meet a huge range of health, nutritional and lifestyle needs.”