It’s been a rollercoaster ride for beverages over the past 12 months with Covid restrictions severely impacting mobility and footfall into the P&C channel.
Bega Dairy & Drinks Marketing Director Sharon Winton says the category is set for strong growth in 2022 as we get back to post-Covid normal.
“This is the perfect time to really focus on flavoured milk,” she says. “It’s the third largest packaged beverages category in terms of value, just behind energy and soft drinks, and has among the most valuable shoppers, with over 55% of all flavoured milk shoppers also buying into another profitable category.”
Flavoured milk consists of two key segments: iced coffee (75% of sales) and ‘rainbow’ milk (25%) – comprising all other flavoured milks.
Ms Winton says rainbow milk is a fun and exciting category as shoppers look for new products and flavour combinations to try and experience.
“Chocolate, strawberry and vanilla are the core flavours of this segment,” she says.
“However, there’s been significant uplift in sales in limited edition flavours recently, including Blue Heaven, Hokey Pokey and Zooper Dooper adding incremental sales and profitability to the segment over the past 12 months.
“It’s critical that new and limited lines are highlighted on shelf with clear point of sale, availability and excellent store execution, especially in the first six weeks of launch,” Ms Winton says.
Bega Dairy & Drinks has identified three key opportunities in milk-based beverages:
- Give consumers fresh local Aussie owned and made products.
- Improve category visibility and profitability.
- Do the right thing for the long term and support sustainable development.
Read more about flavoured milk in the May issue of Convenience World.
