Chief executive of Gambia Cheese and chairman of Dairy UK Paul Vernon highlighted the need for effective communication between dairy companies and consumers.
“The world and the dairy sector has changed massively over the past 30 years and the way we are communicating with consumers has changed too,” he said.
“Dairy is a superfood and we need to ensure that message is heard loud and clear by consumers who are under a constant barrage of misleading and ill-informed messages about dairy.”
Taking place this week, industry leaders are examining the major issues affecting the world of dairy.
IDF leader of global standards Jaap Evers drew attention to the ‘high-quality’ protein that is found in many dairy products.
“It is imperative that we get the message to consumers that it is an integral part of a sustainable diet,” he said.
“We do not want to reach a stage where consumers are given the message that from an environmental perspective there is ‘green’, i.e. good protein, and ‘red’, i.e. bad protein, and that dairy is somehow a ‘red’ protein.”
Today the IDF has published its World Dairy Situation Report 2017 which reveals the volatility in the market as a result of supply and demand issues.
The federation said that dynamism in the European and US markets is leading recovery and production prospects over the next few months ‘remain good’.
New Zealand remains the world’s largest exporter of dairy with a 29% share of the market, closely followed by the EU at 28% and the US at 24%.
Overall production of milk rose by 0.9% in 2016 compared with growth rates of 2% and more in recent years.