Page 20 - Food & Drink Magazine October 2019

DAIRY PROCESSING
20 | Food&Drink business | October 2019 | www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au
Mooving on
nonetheless. Per capita, dairy milk consumption has been slowly declining in Australia since 2014. This, combined with recent droughts, has put significant pressure on
dairy farmers.
In the past, the dairy sector
has been able to innovate in order to generate new demand. This included the introduction of flavoured milk, as well as reduced and low-fat milk.
However, consumption of these product varieties has stabilised or begun to decline over the last five years, with demand for plant-based alternatives such as almond and coconut milk taking their place.
Alt-milk has risen in popularity due to a variety of factors. Rising instances of lactose intolerance, as well as general perceptions about the healthiness of dairy milk, has encouraged many consumers to seek out these alt-milks.
Soy milk has traditionally been the most popular plant-based beverage in Australia, however, this is changing. Almond milk has made up considerable ground, particularly over the last three or four years.
According to IBISWorld research, almond milk now accounts for 44.2 per cent of the soy and almond milk production industry (which also incorporates other plant-based milks), compared to 47.6 per cent for soy milk.
The growth of veganism has also contributed to the popularity of alt-milk. Similarly, increased concern around the issue of climate change has also impacted consumer preferences in favour of these alternatives. There is a public campaign by environmentalists with the aim to convert consumers away from animal-based diets and towards plant-based diets, in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Increasing immigration from Asia, where dairy consumption is low and plant-based beverages are more common, is reinforcing the trend from the former to the latter.
There have been a number of product innovations in the alt-milk space. Pea-protein, which is a key ingredient in
Demand for plant- based milks has skyrocketed in Australia over the past five years as traditional dairy industries attempt to wrestle back momentum. IBISWorld
THE increased popularity for alternative milk in recent years has come at the expense of the dairy sector.
The rise of alt-milk has been driven by changing consumers preferences, which are in turn due to a range of factors.
Both alt-milk producers and dairy milk producers have been forced to respond to these changes. The alt-milk producers are continuously changing to take advantage of the opportunities created by the change.
The dairy industry, on the other hand, is acting more defensively to try to retain market share, but is innovating