US Hispanic dairy consumption drops, says study

An Innovation Center for US Dairy white paper has analysed the growing Hispanic market in that country and reports that milk consumption among the Hispanic market decreases as people become more integrated into the larger society. The less acculturated group consumes almost 50 per cent more milk, cheese and yogurt than the most acculturated segment of Hispanic consumers. This gap could result in the loss of 700 million pounds of fluid milk sales for this segment by 2030. Additionally, there is a vast difference in dairy preferences between the less acculturated and more acculturated consumers. Whole milk penetration is almost 14 per cent higher among foreign-born Hispanics, compared with the US-born segment, while drinkable yogurt penetration is almost double, and Hispanic cheese penetration is nearly four times higher
“Hispanic consumers in the US are a highly diverse group with different beliefs, customs, experiences and behaviours,” Lynn Stachura, vice president of strategic insight with Dairy Management Inc notes. “These cultural differences make it even more important for marketers to understand this audience and develop messaging and programming to meet their unique needs.”