Brussels, 03/07/2007 (Agence Europe) - On 27 June, the European Commission adopted a report on the evolution of the market in milk products and competing products. It highlights the glaring lack of data available on products competing with milk and milk products, but the Commission believes the impact of such products to be marginal, despite their having the advantage of lower prices.
In the report, the Commission notes that the industry correctly applies labelling rules for products competing with milk and for milk products. Retailers, however, do not always show the same respect for the 1987 regulation on the protection of the designation of milk and milk products. This failure to fully comply with the regulation presents “a clear risk of misleading the consumer,” the report says. Milk products and competing products are frequently placed side by side on shop shelves, and have similar packaging. The consumer, the Commission goes on, may be misled by the competing product if it is not clearly identified as an alternative non-dairy product. The Commission has identified several products which do not comply with the provisions of the Community regulation on designations: soy cheese, milk with royal jelly, milk with soy isoflavones, and milk with vegetable sterols. Some member states do not allow such designations, others appear to take no action to avoid such abusive designations, the Commission says.
The report also confirms that children now prefer to drink flavoured milk, rather than plain. There is less demand for plain milk, but foods and drinks with dairy ingredients are very popular: mixtures of fruit juices and milk or milk products, cappuccino and similar drinks, hot or cold, are now widely available and consumed. The Commission notes that basic milk products may also be replaced by food products containing dairy ingredients based mainly on the protein fraction. Whey products, once a by-product causing environmental disposal problems, are now presented as “healthy foods” or as an essential part of dietary products. In early 2007, market prices for whey were the highest ever recorded.
Changes in the drinking milk market clearly demonstrate consumers' preference for semi-skimmed or skimmed milk. Drinking milk consumption habits vary from one member state to another. Within (the 25-member) EU, full fat milk represents over one third of the drinking milk produced, semi-skimmed represents more than 50% and skimmed milk 10%. National data, however, show wide differences between member states, with the consumption of skimmed milk being marginal, below 3%, while in others, like Denmark, it can be up to 49%.
The report confirms the growing success of yoghurt, the production of which is continuing to rise. Some basic, plain yoghurts have given way to flavoured yoghurts or products with added fruit, nuts or cereals. Cheese is another product which is continuing to consolidate its position as a major element of a balanced diet, thanks, in particular, to the increased lower fat product range. New speciality cheeses, cheeses being used in sandwiches and salads, grated or powdered cheese for use in cooking and processed cheese have also been important in encouraging consumption.
The Commission notes that products labelled “organic” are now widely available in retail shops, when only a few years ago they were seen as expensive niche products. They are sold at higher prices and may also represent a bigger return for milk producers. The report highlights, among the recent innovations in the milk products sector, the appearance of a product called Labam (a fermented milk drink), which is widely drunk by people originating in the north of Africa. (lc)