CONTACT:

Steve Bauer
312-988-2348
sbauer@webershandwick.com

Kirsten Whipple
312-988-2485
kwhipple@webershandwick.com

Kids Drink More Milk at School with Cool New Flavors, Packaging
New milk research suggests that simple marketing and product improvements can help students choose a healthier alternative at school, and increase milk consumption by up to 34 percent.

Washington, D.C. (July 19, 2005) - Wooed by flashy advertising and promotions, kids are now drinking three times more soda than milk. Not surprisingly, childhood obesity rates also have tripled in the last 20 years, and schools are leading the charge to provide healthier food and beverage options to students. New milk research suggests that simple marketing and product improvements can help students choose a healthier alternative at school, and increase milk consumption by up to 34 percent.

The dairy industry recently completed a 300-school pilot study in St. Louis to learn what it takes to make milk a more popular choice among American school children. The results of this study, unveiled this week at the School Nutrition Association's 59th Annual National Conference in Baltimore, MD, reveal that when offered a variety of milk flavors such as vanilla and strawberry, in colorful, kid-friendly packaging, kids are choosing milk more often.

"Taking a page from the soda manufacturers' marketing manual, many milk processors are taking steps to make milk more "cool" for kids," said Tom Nagle, vice president of marketing for the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA). "Students in the St. Louis test chose milk because of the new graphics and packaging, but they kept drinking it because of the great taste and new flavors."

Why milk?
The battle against growing childhood obesity rates is a key issue facing school nutrition professionals. A recent study of more than 200 school vending machines found that 7 out of 10 beverage options were sugary soft drinks such as soda and fruit drinks. Healthful alternatives such as milk made up only 5 percent of the choices.

"Milk helps kids and teens get vital nutrients they need for growth and development, and replacing sugary sodas and juice drinks is one crucial step in the fight against childhood obesity," said Rita Duncan, a registered dietitian and the executive director of the St. Louis District Dairy Council.

About the St. Louis School Milk Test
The St. Louis School Milk Test was conducted from January to June 2005, and was sponsored by local milk processor Prairie Farms and the Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP), and supported by the St. Louis Dairy Council. Nearly 300 elementary, middle and high schools serving 164,000 students received a combination of enhanced carton packaging with colorful, kid-friendly graphics, and new milk flavors, including strawberry, vanilla and chocolate. Schools were provided with marketing kits, posters and "got milk?" merchandise to assist with implementation. An additional 120 schools were in a control group with no change to their milk offering.

Across all schools receiving the new flavors and packaging, milk consumption increased an average of 12.2 percent. However, consumption at the schools that participated in sampling programs and other awareness-building activities (nearly 25 percent) rose by 34 percent. The control group saw no change to milk consumption.

"These results show schools that they can help children make healthier beverage choices," said Nagle. "And milk processors across the country now have a template for success in their own markets."

The School Nutrition Association services 28 million children and serves 4.7 billion lunches and 1.4 billion breakfasts each year. Conference attendees from all 50 states and 14 countries discuss healthy cooking techniques, food safety efforts, nutrition standards for vended and a la carte foods, beverages and more.

The Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP), Washington, D.C., is funded by the nation's milk processors, who are committed to increasing fluid milk consumption. Together with dairy farmers, the MilkPEP Board runs the National "got milk?" Milk Mustache Campaign, a multi-faceted campaign designed to educate consumers on the benefits of milk. For more information, go to www.whymilk.com.

The tagline "got milk?"® was created for the California Milk Processor Board by Goodby Silverstein & Partners and is licensed by the national processor and producer groups.

[Go Back]