The Healthy Halo. That's the arena where dairy products – milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, and whey – can compete and win.

With that strength in mind, Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) leaders gradually started shifting dairy checkoff funds a decade ago from generic advertising toward milk partnerships that enhance dairy product sales. Along the way, collaborative innovations encouraged food companies to look over the fence and bring more dairy to their menus. These catalytic effects can't be bought with advertising budgets.

To bring this approach to full light, we launched the "Dairy Food Makers" series.