Moving Beyond Plant-based: A Dairy Market Analysis
On a recent grocery store visit, I noted that my store had finished renovations. To familiarize myself with the new layout, I walked down each aisle, noting the new placement of products that I regularly consume (cereal moved up an aisle, coffee moved down one). Things were generally in the same spot, but I couldn’t help notice something else. It might be a bit of exaggeration, but it felt as if the renovation’s sole purpose was to shine a light on new natural and organic product offerings. Before the renovation, the store had maybe a quarter of an aisle sectioned off for these products. Now, the store has a dedicated aisle and half to such products, and I found more natural/organic products evenly spread across the store. Many of the products I tasted at the Natural Products Expo West in year’s past had made their way to my local, Midwest grocery store.
One of the most predominantly displayed items in this section was a range of plant-based milks in all different flavors and formats (nut, soy, grain, etc.). But just as I turned from one aisle to the next, I noticed something that hadn’t moved – the much larger animal-based dairy section, stocked with gallons of milk, flavorful creamers and yogurts as far as the eye could see.