Dairy Company Innovates the Cultured Dairy Category with Cream Cheeses

California-based Yooli Foods is introducing an alternative to yogurt cups in the form of spoonable cream cheeses. The dairy company is offering three flavors to choose from: honey lemon zest, strawberry and vanilla. All products contain a minimum of 16 grams of protein, probiotics, and are 99 percent lactose free and just 120 calories per cup.  The company is also offering a variety of high-protein cream cheese bars that are wrapped in dark chocolate as an alternative to traditional protein bars.

With yogurt sales slowly declining – even popular Greek yogurt products – dairy companies are looking for ways to make their category more appealing to consumers. However, according to market research firm, Euromonitor International, there is a 12 percent growth from dairy companies like Noosa and Icelandic brands like Siggi’s Dairy because of their unique flavor options like raspberry habanero.

“We’ve seen that Greek yogurt has been declining more quickly than the overall yogurt category, as large brands decline and newer launches, largely from bigger companies, were discontinued,” said Heidi Krauss, vice president of marketing and business development for Siggi’s dairy, New York. “However, drinkable yogurts and whole-milk yogurts are outpacing category growth. We think the key to getting the category growing again is to get the assortment right, to give consumers more of the wholesome products they enjoy eating.”

By using a cream cheese base, Yooli is able to deliver a higher naturally-sourced protein content than traditional flavored yogurt cups. Their clean-label focus and ingredients are likely to grab the attention of the now health-focused consumer market. Their 99 percent lactose free label is also appealing to the now 65 percent of people who are lactose intolerant.

Yooli’s cream cheese bars are also entering a growing food category: snack/protein bars. Research firm, IRI, referred to snack and granola bars as a top growth opportunity in their recent report on emerging snacking trends. Yooli’s unique cream cheese offering is a game changer in the snack bar group and has a lot of potential in the millennial market with more consumers interested in trying new things.

Although the sweetened “cream cheese” aspect to their product might not seem too appetizing for some consumers, the nutritional information on their packaging is sure to inspire people to try it.

According to IRI research, the cream cheese category has increased in sales this year by 3.8 percent to $1.7 billion. These figures are promising for Yooli Foods as they introduce a new category of cream cheese.