Traditional, Plant-Based Dairy Fight for Shelf Space
Since soy milk's popularity skyrocketed in the late 1970s on the heels of the natural food channel's counter-culture health beverage trend, plant-based milks have become entrenched in mainstream supermarkets
Dairy alternatives marketers are grappling with regulations over using industry terms such as "milk" and "butter", discussed at length in Packaged Facts' free white paper piece, White Paper: Terminology Tempest in the Dairy Case, authored by Packaged Facts' research director, David Sprinkle.
A recent European Union ruling has deemed it illegal for non-dairy soy/soya brands to market their products with dairy terminology, paralleling a regulatory skirmish in the US that reflects non-dairy alternatives' "rush to the perimeter" taking place in supermarkets. Once tucked away in the shelf-stable center store, non-dairy and plant-based dairy alternatives have jumped into the refrigerated dairy case alongside milk-based counterparts. "This is a battle for shelf space and consumer dollars," says Sprinkle.