MilkPEP's School Milk Test is Generating Sales Increases

Improved Packaging and Flavor Variety Are Keys to Success

(Washington, D.C. - March 30, 2005)  As many students in the St. Louis
area returned from their Christmas vacations, they were greeted with
significant improvements in their schools' milk choices thanks to the
"St. Louis School Milk Test" jointly sponsored by Prairie Farms, the
Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP) and the St. Louis Dairy
Council.  The test involves about 165,000 students at almost 300 area
schools and experiments with new multi-colored paperboard packaging,
improved flavor formulations and new flavors to determine which products
are most popular with children.  After the first 10 weeks of the test,
through March 15, flavored milk sales increased an average of almost 20%
per school. 

The test will continue through the second half of the school year,
concluding in June.  Complete results from the "St. Louis School Milk
Test" will be released this summer.
"This test is confirming what we suspected - enhanced paperboard
packaging and new and improved flavors can significantly increase school
milk sales," says IDFA Senior Manager of Marketing Victor Zaborsky.  "We
anticipate that the second half of the test will have similar results."
The 290 participating schools are divided into three groups, each of
which receives a combination of enhanced paperboard packaging with
colorful, kid-friendly graphics, and new flavors including chocolate,
strawberry and vanilla.  One group is being offered white, strawberry,
chocolate and vanilla flavored milk in new milk packaging that features
bright colors and kid-appealing graphics.  Another group offers the same
packaging and white, strawberry and chocolate flavored milk.  The third
group offers white, strawberry and chocolate flavored milk, but
packaging with even more sophisticated graphics that use more colors and
showcase active kids.  Finally, an additional 120 schools are the
control group and have no changes to their school milk offerings.
Milk sales at schools participating in the test have increased an
average of 12% per school.  The schools with the most sophisticated milk
packaging have had the largest increases in overall milk sales, at
almost 14% per school.  Flavored milk sales have fared even better, with
increased sales of almost 20% per school.   
To augment the new flavors and packaging, the schools are hosting
sampling events for the students to try the different milk flavors and a
"Milk Awareness Day," which highlights the many health and nutrition
benefits of milk.  Additionally, schools have posted "got milk?"
point-of-sale materials in their cafeterias.
Improved packaging and increased flavor variety are just two
improvements identified in MilkPEP's "Capturing the School Milk
Opportunity" program.  To learn more about this program, milk processors
should plan to attend a two-day school milk seminar held in various
cities this spring.   To register for a seminar, visit www.milkpep.org.
Processors with more than 10 employees interested in the program may
schedule their own seminar by contacting Victor Zaborsky at
vzaborsky@idfa.org or at 202-220-3515. 

The Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP), Washington, D.C., is
funded by the nation's milk processors, who are committed to increasing
fluid milk consumption.  The International Dairy Foods Association
(IDFA) is contracted by MilkPEP to administer processor-funded
programming.  For more information on the campaign, go to
www.whymilk.com or www.idfa.org.

The tagline "got milk?"® was created for the California Milk Processor
Board by Goodby Silverstein & Partners and is licensed by the national
processor and producer groups.