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2024 with Cow

Year in Review

How Checkoff Pays Off

We advocate with purpose, connecting dairy with hearts, minds and communities everywhere. In 2024, we focused on growing trust and driving sales by engaging key influencers including health professionals and star athletes; expanding dairy options in restaurants, schools and online grocery platforms; and highlighting farmers’ dedication to animal care and sustainability. As culture and technology evolve, so do our strategies: We continue to introduce new initiatives and enhance successful programs to keep dairy relevant for today’s consumers.

Explore the full 2024 Annual Report to see Dairy MAX’s impact in action.

Youth Engagement

We engaged Gen Z and Gen Alpha on multiple fronts, including local athlete influencers, a dairy farm-themed map in the popular online game Fortnite, and new in-school programs that led to more dairy menu options and more milk pounds sold.

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School illustration
400,000
students across 562 schools now have more dairy options through Nutrition NOW grants
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Game controller illustration
195,000
plays on Fortnite Farm Tycoon
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Football illustration
1,400,000
impressions and engagements on content from our athlete influencers
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people illustration
249,000
people toured the Dairy Discovery Zone mobile exhibit
Farmer Relations | Connections

We helped grow farmer connections to the community, from our annual blood drive to ag media placements to agricultural education events where students could learn about dairy’s journey from farm to table.

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Passion for Pints T-shirt
12,290
units of blood donated through Passion for Pints, potentially impacting more than 36,860 lives
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Child on Dairy Tour 360
8,000+
students learned about dairy at agricultural education events across the region
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Mobile phone
93,000,000+
impressions on our messaging in ag media
Consumer Engagement

We helped spread good news about dairy on social media and facilitated consumers’ direct purchase of dairy items through e-commerce campaigns, as well as partnerships with restaurant chains and local university athletics programs.

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Web shopping illustration
5,000,000
pounds of milk sold through e-commerce campaigns with Walmart, Dollar General and Instacart
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Pizza illustration
500,000
pounds of milk sold through a partnership with Marco’s Pizza, a return of more than $2 for every dollar spent
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Instagram illustration
19%
increase in Instagram engagement over previous year
Stakeholder Engagement

We influenced the influencers, including educating health professionals on the importance of dairy for Black Americans and reaching schools with education and opportunities that led to increased sales.

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Dairy nutrition messaging
907,000
child nutrition professionals reached with dairy nutrition messaging and opportunities
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Food charity
$19
return for every dollar spent on the Tackle Hunger partnership – a $5K investment that has translated to $100K in funding designated for local food charities to purchase dairy
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Girl eating lunch in class
~400
physicians, medical students, dietitians and residents educated on the role of dairy for improving health among Black Americans
Sustainability

We got audiences excited about dairy sustainability through super-short social media videos, our ever-popular Dairy Discovery Zone mobile exhibit, and a field day educating about the wonders of vermiculture.

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Social media illustration
8,880,000
impressions on Gen Z-targeted sustainability videos, with a 70% view completion rate
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Udder illustration
249,000
people learned about dairy farming in the Dairy Discovery Zone mobile exhibit, reaching 3M visitors total
Issues and Crisis

We monitored news and issues impacting the dairy community and provided timely and accurate information to our dairy farmers.

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Farmer walking
90
staff, farmers and stakeholders completed issues and crisis communication trainings
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Hand being raised
42
industry partners coordinated with us on issues management

By the Numbers

 

Corporate Communications

Health and Wellness

Business Development

Industry Image and Relations

Issues and Crisis Management

Sustainability

Administrative

School Marketing

USDEC