Focus On Dairy Drinks: 13 March

Focus On: Dairy Drinks by Henry Sandercock

Download the synopsis here

Publishing: 13 March 2021

Advertising deadline: 26 February 2021

Submissions deadline: 19 February 2021

The Story

In 2020 Dairy Drinks sales dipped across both brands and own label. It’s clear that the nation’s move towards homeworking during the pandemic impacted the on-the-go market but which brands have emerged as promising players in the new normal and how have they pivoted from on-the-go to in-home? Are health-driven, gut-loving yoghurt drinks, which performed well, paving the way? How are manufacturers marrying consumer demand across both health and homeworking trends?

Key Themes

Health: A renewed focus on health during the pandemic has emerged as a key factor driving consumer choice. With consumers seeking more natural products with fewer and familiar ingredients, what opportunities are there for dairy drinks, particularly those with added functional benefits, e.g. for gut health, energy and immunity? This feature will also look at how dairy-free alternatives have disrupted the category.

Packaging formats: With many consumers working from home, are single serves being upsized to larger sharing packs for the weekly shop? Should we expect more Mail Order and Subscriptions services to pop up? And is the category poised to pivot again when lockdown restrictions are lifted and grab-and-go opportunities resume?

Flavours: In 2019 The Grocer reported that sales of coffee-fuelled Dairy Drinks were up by 9.7%, a trend that continued into 2020. Are consumers still turning to RTD frappes and iced coffees? Is breakfast still the most important meal of the day for dairy drinks or are we seeing more opportunities throughout the day? We will also take a brief look at flavour trends in other markets, such as The States, China and Japan.

Sustainability: How has the pandemic impacted consumer attitudes around environmental and farming when it comes to the Dairy Drinks category? This feature will explore how manufacturers have become greener and cleaner.

NPD/Innovation: A key focus will be how the trends described above are impacting the latest NPD and upcoming launches. We will be profiling four interesting upcoming launches in a separate boxout - we require details about the product, its launch date, rsp and retail listings and high resolution (no less than 300dpi/1mb) product images.

Kantar data: Using Kantar commentary, we explain the reasons behind the rise and fall of the subcategories that make up this market.