An insightful Twitter user noted recently that the reason we have generational conflict in society is because while the business world is focused on young people, the political world is dominated by older people.
It’s an oversimplification of course, but one worth considering when it comes to our primary industries.
Many argue that meat and dairy have qualities that will endure and already trump the competition in terms of taste and nutritional value.
But most of the people making that argument grew up with meat and dairy as staples in their diets, so there’s a bit of confirmation bias at play.
Young people today may not have that tradition and may have a different attitude when choosing what to buy and eat.
New research in the United States shows dairy consumption by Generation Z has plummeted 20%.
That’s driven the industry there to undertake a massive marketing campaign to convert those young people back to dairy products.
It’s obviously worth noting that dairy products still outsell their plant-based alternatives by a massive margin.
But tracking key demographics in high-value markets is how businesses survive and thrive, so winning that section of the population is vital.
It’s a tightrope walk, though, because to many young people in the US, pushing milk is just another example of older generations blaming young people for changes in staple US industries.
Maybe it’s time to bring back the milk moustache.
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