12/10/02
By CARYL VELISEK
New dairy products and new ways of marketing them were the main topic of the Maryland Dairy Industry Association annual meeting held Nov. 26, 2002, at the fire hall in New Midway, Md.
Changing the meeting’s usual format of business, from the grim reality of the drought and depressed milk prices, to some of the exciting an innovative things going on in the dairy industry, was a welcome change, according to Myron Wilhide, president of the organization.
New and innovative products were available throughout the meeting, not only in displays but as adjuncts to morning and afternoon breaks and to the lunch menu.
Patty Purcell, director of advertising and retail sales promotion for the Mid-Atlantic Dairy Association (MDA), led off the morning. According to Purcell, MDA started life as a regional organization and is now part of the national Dairy Management, Inc.
“By pooling our resources we have a much better buy,” Purcell said. By partnering with large corporations like McDonald’s, Kraft, Borden, Land O’ Lakes, Giant, Walmart, NASCAR, and Disney, the industry has a much greater reach and by individualizing campaigns to the corporation, they are willing to spend more and mount a much more aggressive program, she said.
School and other vending machines are a target for milk and milk product promotion and an extremely important one, Purcell said.
“Getting milk and dairy products into vending machines is extremely important now,” Purcell said. “We think it’s going to explode. Kids drink milk if it is available to them and in easy-to-get-into packaging.”
Even Coke and Pepsi are getting into milk-based drinks, she added.
Born and raised in Frederick County, Md., Jody Vona had been with Dairy Maid Dairy since his father purchased it in 1946 when there were 26 processors in Frederick County.
“There are now three,” Vona said, “Four, if you count Giant Foods.”
Vona said his family has been able to stay in the business by being a step ahead of the others.
“We switched from glass containers to paper, then plastic. We were two and a half months ahead of Giant with half gallon packaging.”
Vending is a big concept, Vona said.
“McDonalds just bought a robot-run vending store. Partnering is a big part of the the business, You have to constantly move forward or you get left behind.”
Other speakers included Tom Washburn, founder of Moxley’s Homemade Ice Cream Company (Moxley is his dog’s name), Tom Matson, a division manager with Marva Maid Dairy, and Mary Concannon, the osteoporosis prevention coordinator at the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene in Baltimore, who gave a very convincing argument for using dairy products during all one’s lifetime to help prevent osteoporosis and saying, “It’s a pediatric disease with a geriatric outcome.”
During the business portion of the meeting, Brad Powers, retired Maryland Deputy Secretary of Agriculture encouraged dairymen to be aware of what’s going on in Annapolis, especially if the vending machine bill comes up, and to write, e-mail and phone representatives.