When we grew up - there was milk with every meal. Now, not so much with GenZers and Millennials.
Texas A&M Professor and Extension Economist David Anderson says some of these folks have more fragile bodies that just can't digest it... and we have a bigger variety of liquids to consume. "Now we have many alternatives: I'll say QUOTE MILK like oat and almond and you-name-it. Now we have different beverages - and we drink a lot more (expensive) coffee." ...and sports drinks and fizzy waters. Dr. Anderson says we're still ingesting a lot of it. "We drink less liquid milk - but now we're actually consuming more milk than ever through cheese, butter, Greek yogurt and regular yogurt." Anderson says one reason is simply times change. "Some of it is just 'changing tastes and preferences' as us economists say. For so many of us who eat our breakfasts while driving to work every morning - it's hard to drive AND eat a bowl of cereal!"
He IS concerned about kids not getting what they need for healthy bones and steady growth and has concerns for those groups who think milk's unhealthy. " Are we getting all the vitamins we need for healthy bones and growing bodies? The fat in milk is part of what delivers the vitamins into the rest of our bodies! "
The dairy industry is launching a marketing assault intended to do what the “Got Milk?” did for previous generations.
photo:Getty