Brian Berk

Port Washington

Editor-in-Chief at Dairy Foods Magazine

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Articles

Cottage cheese sales hit a huge home run

1 week ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

“Ain’t no stopping us now. We’re on the move.” Turn on a radio and you may still hear that McFadden & Whitehead 1979 disco song. Those lyrics well define cottage cheese: There is currently no stopping its growth. Sales of the cultured dairy product reached $1.75 billion in dollar sales for the 52-week period ending Feb. 23, an 18% year-over-year (YoY) increase, according to Chicago-based market research firm Circana.
Dairy Industry Surges Ahead with Innovation and Health Trends

1 week ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

A couple of months ago, I opined the success of the dairy industry has been underreported. This month, I have the numbers to back up this comment. I want to share some data that was presented during our March webinar, titled “Dairy Innovations Unveiled: Navigating the Hottest Trends in Product Development,” presented by Carrin Merkel, client services director at Curion Insights, and Gina Roberts, insights manager at SPINS.
Digestive health comes into focus

3 weeks ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

Ingredients for Dairy ProcessorsProbiotics One would think that fibers related to promoting health and wellness, specifically digestive health and immune health, would be growing nicely today. That assumption would be correct. Prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics are all enjoying growth in their respective markets. “Prebiotics are non-digestible food components that stimulate the growth or activity of beneficial bacteria in the gut. They are essentially food for probiotics.
Ready-to-drink beverages soon to be a $1T market

4 weeks ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk |Micah Greenhill

Dairy Foods & BeveragesNew Dairy Products The ready-to-drink (RTD) market keeps reaching new heights. The global market size was valued at $766.6 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow to $804.8 billion this year, according to a February report from Fortune Business Insights.
Symrise celebrates 150 years of vanilla

1 month ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

Symrise on April 10 celebrated World Vanilla Day with a plethora of vanilla taste tests and a keynote speech from author Paula Limena. The event, taking place on New York City’s Park Avenue, is in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the discovery of vanillin in 1874. Last year, the first celebration took place in Germany. The four-hour party continued in the United States this year, with more celebrations planned globally, Allison Scowden, Symrise marketing director.
Natural cheese dollar sales surpass $20B

1 month ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

Overall, it has been a strong past 52 weeks for cheese, especially when looking at the natural cheese category. There were some pockets of weakness however, mainly the processed cheese and grated cheese subcategories, according to Chicago-based market research firm Circana’s data for the 52 weeks ending Jan. 26.
Dairy is a “super food”

1 month ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

It is of course anecdotal, but I have noticed a major shift in consumer trends toward dairy products in the last several months. This is definitely something for the dairy industry to capitalize on. Gone are the days when consumers painted dairy products with an “unhealthy” brush, and has been replaced with a growing perception that dairy is a “super food.” Most publicized has been cottage cheese’s great year-over-year sales growth, according to Circana data.
Episode 51 - Dairy alternatives take center stage during “Let’s Talk Dairy” podcast

1 month ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

Catherine Bayard, global product manager of Plant Attitude at Givaudan, joins us for Episode 51 of the “Let’s Talk Dairy” podcast. Bayard manages the dairy and cheese alternatives category globally at Switzerland-based Givaudan, helping to create food experiences intended to do good and feel good for body, mind and planet. Bayard has more than 20 years of expertise in senior marketing and category management roles in diverse food and beverage categories.
Sugar reduction a huge component of health and wellness’ popularity

1 month ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

Ingredients for Dairy Processors 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.
CheeseCon ready to return to Wisconsin next month

2 months ago | dairyfoods.com | Brian Berk

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. Presented by the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA) and the Center for Dairy Research (CDR), CheeseCon features seminars, networking, a 75,000-square-foot tabletop exhibit floor, energetic celebrations of industry excellence, and more.