May 26 2021 08:00 AM

You can get involved with National June Dairy Month in a few fun, new ways that appeal to a younger generation of consumers.

National Dairy Month is always a time of pride for dairy farmers and the industry as a whole. There are local farm tours (and many new virtual ones), on-the-farm breakfasts, and nationwide marketing campaigns done through the national dairy checkoff. In the past, these campaigns would have focused on national television or radio with the hope of reaching a broad audience.

Now, the dairy industry is using its resources to target a younger generation where they spend the most time — gaming and on social media. Check out these new campaigns and see how you can get involved in telling your story to Gen Z through these marketing platforms.

Fun and games
Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) is partnering with influential Gen Z gamers by introducing how dairy’s great nutrition package can help them be better at gaming.

It's called “Beat the Lag.” The lag happens when games or gamers themselves slow down.

For the latter, we believe dairy can provide a nutritious solution.

Our gamers will create their own #BeatTheLag recipe and ask others, including many Gen Z players, to create theirs, too, for a "Beat The Lag" contest.

Gaming fans can vote for their favorite dairy-themed recipe, with the winners announced via a live Twitch (a video streaming service for gaming) event. DMI will work with our state and regional teams to amplify this effort.

Ready for the challenge

MilkPEP, with its new You’re Gonna Need Milk For That! campaign, is partnering with TikTok and TikTok influencers during National Dairy Month. The campaign is called "#HoldMyMilk" and it requires passing your milk to a friend and then doing an amazing athletic and/or entertaining feat before finishing up drinking your milk.

Several Olympic athletes from Team Milk, plus sports influencers and partners will engage in the challenge.

Finally, check out a grassroots campaign with the Milk Flip Cup challenge on Instagram. For Season 2 of the challenge, dairy farmers and other agvocates are taking each other on to see who will be crowned the winner of the Milk Flip Cup challenge.

To participate, you need to fill out this application, or you can nominate someone with the nomination form. All funds raised are going to Feeding America.

To learn more about your national dairy checkoff, visit www.USDairy.com or send a request to join our Dairy Checkoff Facebook group.


Don Schindler


The author is a Senior Vice President of Digital Initiatives at Dairy Management Inc.