Based on new data from the USDA Economic Research Service (ERS), increased consumption of cheese, butter and yogurt helped offset another year-to-year decline in fluid beverage milk.
Annual data from USDA ERS, which began tracking annual consumption of dairy products in 1975, shows U.S. per capita consumption of dairy products (on a milk-equivalent, milkfat basis) increased 7 pounds from 2022 to 661 pounds in 2023 (Table 1).
The per capita consumption of dairy products matched the all-time record set in 2021. U.S. Department of Labor consumer price index data shows the cost of dairy products purchased for home consumption in 2023 rose about 1.3% from 2022 compared to the 12% seen in 2021.
Per capita dairy product consumption has risen 17 pounds in the past five years, from 644 pounds in 2018, and was up 93 pounds since 1990.
U.S. consumers continue to eat more dairy in the form of cheese, butter and yogurt. The long-term decline in the consumption of fluid milk persists (Table 1).
Cheese consumption sets record
Cheese consumption set an all-time high in 2023 reaching 40.2 pounds per person, a 0.3 pound per-person increase over the previous year. For comparison, the average American consumed 29.5 pounds of cheese in 2000 and 17.5 pounds in 1980.
Consumption for American-type cheeses increased to 16.81 pounds per capita in 2023, with a small decrease in cheddar offset by a slight increase in other cheeses. Consumption of Italian-type cheeses also decreased slightly to 15.94 pounds per person. It marked the third straight year that per capita consumption of American cheeses surpassed Italian cheeses, reversing a decade-long period that those categories were flipped.
Consumption of Swiss, blue and cream/Neufchatel cheeses decreased while brick, Muenster and Hispanic cheeses were all steady or slightly higher than the year before. Cottage cheese consumption increased over last year at just above 2 pounds per person for the first time since 2019, according to USDA records.
Consumption of process cheese and cheese foods and spreads added another 8.54 pounds, which increased 1.1 pounds from last year and is still the highest total since 1999.
Butter, yogurt consumption increases
Per capita consumption of butter also set an all-time high in 2023 reaching 6.5 pounds, a 0.4 pound per person increase over 2022. After posting declines for most of the last quarter of the 1900s, annual per capita butter consumption has now increased 2 pounds since 2000.
The consumption of yogurt (other than frozen) increased in 2023 to 13.8 pounds per capita, up 0.3 pound from the previous year. It remains 1.1 pound less than the peak in 2013-14 but has grown 60% in the past 20 years.
Per capita consumption of other dairy products was mixed. Americans indulged in less regular ice cream and low-fat and nonfat ice cream stayed the same (about 17.9 pounds), frozen yogurt intake stayed the same and sherbet decreased. Consumption of dry products (milk and whey powders) were mostly unchanged from 2022.
Fluid milk continues decline
U.S. per capita consumption of fluid milk was estimated at 128 pounds in 2023, down another 2 pounds from 2022 (Table 2). Longer term, per capita fluid consumption was down 68 pounds (roughly 8.1 gallons) since 2000.
As a percentage of total U.S. dairy product consumption, fluid beverage milk slipped from nearly 46% in 1975 to 19.4% in 2023.
U.S. consumers continued last year’s trend in which sales of whole milk increased from the previous year (Figure 1). Total U.S. sales of whole milk rose to 16.2 billion pounds, up 227 million pounds from 2022. Sales of reduced-fat (2%) low-fat (1%) and skim milk declined a combined 694 million pounds. Flavored whole milk, flavored milk other than whole and buttermilk also slightly fell. Those declines were only partially offset by increased sales of eggnog. All told, fluid product sales were down 625 million pounds from 2022.
Organic milk represented about 6.6% of all fluid milk product sales in 2023, unchanged from 2022.
Serving the fluid market, the number of fluid processing plants in the U.S. decreased in 2023 to 453.
“You butter believe that dairy consumption is growing,” said Michael Dykes, president and CEO of the International Dairy Foods Association in Washington, D.C. “Dairy is one of the most nutritionally complete foods available. Milk, cheese, yogurt, whey protein-infused fitness beverages and many other dairy foods contain up to 13 essential nutrients, making dairy one of the most nutrient dense foods available. For flavor, affordability and nutrition, people of all ages are choosing dairy more than ever.”
