Dairy industry says schools test boosts milk sales more than 12 percent

Food & Drink Weekly, August 1, 2005

By experimenting with new multi-colored paper cartons and different flavors, a dairy industry test program involving 165,000 students in 300 St. Louis, Missouri, schools during winter and spring 2005 resulted in milk sales gains of more than 12 percent per school. "The test confirmed our hypothesis that marketing efforts including enhanced packaging and new improved flavors can significantly increase school milk sales," said Victor Zaborsky, senior marketing manager of the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA). "What was surprising was the huge increase in sales realized by schools that incorporated a number of marketing tactics to promote the new milk. The best performing schools had increases of 35 percent."

The largest gains were in schools that displayed "milk moustache" celebrity posters and point-of-sale materials in a cafeteria, arranged "sampling" events and gave prizes in special promotions. "These efforts required nominal costs and paid for themselves in a few weeks," Zaborsky said. The experiment involved new graphic designs attractive to children and flavors including strawberry, vanilla and a reformulated chocolate. New equipment was provided to ensure that schools served milk at the proper temperature.

The test was carried out by the IDFA-affiliated Fluid Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP); Illinois-based coop Prairie Farms Dairy , and the producer-financed St. Louis Dairy Council.