Whether it’s in plant-based or traditional segments, Chobani isn’t ceding any ground in the dairy cold case.
After establishing a presence in oat milk over the last three years, the New York-based brand is seeking to build on the other side of the divide with the national launch of two new refrigerated dairy platforms this month: Ultra Filtered Milk and Half & Half.
Chobani Ultra-Filtered Milk is available in Whole, Reduced Fat (2%), Skim and Chocolate varieties, while Chobani Half & Half comes in Plain and Lactose-Free.
Launching milk and half & half may not be a long reach for one of the market’s biggest yogurt brands, but the pace and depth of product innovation from Chobani across the refrigerated store perimeter has been impressive. The brand is only two years removed from the launch of oat milk, its first non-yogurt product, but in that time it has introduced probiotic beverages and cold brew coffee, as well as dairy, oat and plant-based coffee creamers, the latter hitting stores just last month.
Although fluid dairy milk sales remain mired in long-term declines, ultra-filtered, lactose-free milk has emerged as an encouraging growth segment that aligns with broader consumer interest in value-added beverages. Led by brands like Coca-Cola’s Fairlife and Lactaid, the “easy-to-digest” milk category is up 17.5% year-over-year through January 15, according to Nielsen data. Newer entrants to the market include Organic Valley and Good Moo’d.
Touting more protein than Fairlife (20 grams, compared to 13) and 50% less sugar than traditional dairy milk, Chobani Ultra-Filtered aligns with the same consumer trends that helped fuel Greek yogurt’s meteoric rise over a decade ago, according to Chobani president Peter McGuinness.
“Greek yogurt started to take off 12 years ago because the category was dominated by traditional yogurt, which is higher in sugar and lower in protein,” he said. “Greek yogurt was lower sugar and higher protein, and that’s the biggest mega trend in the U.S. People want more protein and less sugar.”
The launch also puts Chobani into a select group of brands selling both dairy and non-dairy milks, which includes names like Hood (Planet Oat) and Live Real Farms, a division of the Dairy Farmers of America.
Meanwhile, the launch of Half & Half deepens Chobani’s association with coffee. The company’s dairy-based creamers have seen triple-digit growth over the past year, while the latest plant-based creamers (a blend of MCTs from coconut, sunflower oil and pea protein) released last month lean into more indulgent flavors like Caramel Macchiato, Chocolate Hazelnut and French Vanilla. Within its growing cold brew set, the brand is set to introduce a large-format 72 oz. fridge pack in March.
That expanded range of products has put the company in a position to continue opening up new retail channels and partnerships, having teamed with PepsiCo last March on a pilot refrigerated distribution program for convenience stores, colleges and universities in the Northeast. That growth also puts Chobani in closer competition with dairy case platform brands like Califia Farms, which also recently debuted a slate of new products including a zero-sugar oat milk, a plant-milk blend and several new plant-based creamer flavors.
“We’re not just throwing things all across the supermarket, we are in that refrigerated perimeter, which is the most dynamic highest traffic part of the supermarket,” he said. “We proved we could play there in yogurt, and then we proved it with oat milk and coffee creamers and now cold brew. We also are asked by our consumers to play in more parts of that aisle. And so certainly, there’s permission and invitation [to do so].”