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Yogurt, the Rock Star of Dairy Products

Okay, maybe I should explain the title. You could say: “Why yogurt? Look at China. It is milk that is ‘rocking’ in China” – and you’d be right. The Chinese bring a carton of pasteurised milk as a gift to a party where Europeans give a bottle of wine. Yet, unlike milk, yogurt has won […]

Okay, maybe I should explain the title. You could say: “Why yogurt? Look at China. It is milk that is ‘rocking’ in China” – and you’d be right. The Chinese bring a carton of pasteurised milk as a gift to a party where Europeans give a bottle of wine. Yet, unlike milk, yogurt has won the hearts of health gurus, smoothie makers, athletes and lovers of all things natural and home-made. Some of the reasons for the popularity of yogurt in favour of milk are the high amount of quality protein; the fact that it is fermented; and that even the low fat, no sugar version tastes good. On top of that, yogurt offers endless ways to differentiate and innovate. In Western Europe, the yogurt category includes a lot of innovations. Drinkable yogurt with fruits is just one of them.

And let’s not forget the Greek yogurt boom in the United States. In 2008, Greek yogurt accounted for four per cent of the overall yoghurt market. It is spreading across the world. When it reaches China, it will truly have reached rock star status because of the Chinese market’s sheer magnitude.

But there is one major trend where yogurt does not fit in: the trend of eating more plant protein and excluding animal protein from the diet. Despite its popularity, the growing number of vegans and Paleo followers will not consume yogurt because of its animal origin. There are already some small companies experimenting with the fermentation of other, non-animal protein sources such as almond milk and coconut milk. This is a market that yogurt producers need to monitor more closely too.

To tackle the issue of animal fat in yogurt, a small company has already launched an award-winning yogurt product at the SIAL exhibition this year in which animal fat was replaced by olive oil. This will please the health gurus even more! It is just another example of the huge possibilities yogurt has to offer. So: dare to extend your research to new and unexplored areas.

C’mon yogurt, let’s rock!

I’ll be searching for innovations in ingredients for yogurt and other products at the Health Ingredients Europe show in December – and will keep you informed at @VMTredactie and www.vmt.nl