High-fat dairy products all show growth

The good news about consuming dairy fats, and all animal fats for that matter, continues to be received by consumers. That, in turn, has led to evolving diets. While butter and whole milk sales have hit highs not seen in generations, other higher-fat dairy products have also rebounded.

Sour cream: At 1.37 billion pounds, sour cream climbed to the highest level for the USDA data set that traces back to 1975. Sales first climbed over the 1-billion-pound mark in 2002. During the 15-year time span since then, sales climbed 25 percent.

Ice cream: Sales of regular ice cream climbed to 4.2 billion pounds. That total was the highest since 2010.

Cottage cheese: While not necessarily a full-fat dairy product, sales reached 697 million pounds last year. That was the highest level in five years. Overall, the cottage cheese category had better days in the 1970s when sales were over the 1-billion-pound mark. However, the recent upward growth mark might be the start of a rebound for the category.

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