UK dairy industry and government unite to launch consumer campaign

The UK dairy sector, in partnership with government, has announced a new joint-funded campaign to highlight the importance of ‘human connections’ during the current coronavirus crisis.

The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) and Dairy UK have joined forces and are working with Defra, the Scottish government, the Welsh government and the Northern Ireland Executive on the 12-week campaign, which is soon to go live. It will be funded through a combination of £500,000 from the UK governments, £300,000 from Dairy UK members and £200,000 from AHDB.

The campaign will mainly focus on driving the tea, coffee and milky drink occasions as they have the largest volume opportunity and are the centre point of most human connections.

The campaign will appear on social media, digital and, for the first time in over a decade, on television. It is expected that retailers, processors and farmers will come together to support the campaign.

It also aims to provide much needed support to both dairy processors and dairy farmers, who are currently facing difficulties as a result of coronavirus and the closure of cafes and other foodservice outlets.

Environment Secretary George Eustice said: “Our dairy industry plays a crucial role in feeding our nation and we want to support them however we can at this challenging time.

“We know the closure of restaurants and food outlets has meant many producers have excess milk that might otherwise go to waste. That is why we are backing this campaign to drive milk consumption and boost sales.

“We have already relaxed competition rules so dairy farmers can work more closely together on the challenges they are facing, and will continue to support them through this difficult period.”

Christine Watts, AHDB’s Chief Marketing Officer, added: “This is a fantastic demonstration of what can be achieved when industry and government join together to meet a common challenge. We know that consumers love milk and the great taste of dairy, but because it’s such an integral part of our lives, consumers tend to take it for granted – in the same way we all tend to take our day to day relationships as a given.  

Dr Judith Bryans, Chief Executive of Dairy UK, added: “We’re delighted to be working alongside AHDB and the UK governments to promote dairy products.

“Everyday moments of human connection are especially important during this crisis. With this campaign we want to highlight the central and sometimes forgotten role that dairy plays as part of our everyday lives. We want to remind people of the importance of taking a moment to connect with each other while enjoying the foods they love, even if it is remotely. We can still take a moment for ourselves and others in these most challenging of times and we can still enjoy nutritious dairy.”