From cottage cheese ice cream to lactose-free dairy energy shots: The 2024 Real California Milk Excelerator cohort

We caught up with Carroll, VP of business development at the California Milk Advisory Board, at SIAL Paris 2024, where CMAB exhibited as part of the US delegation at the show.

Carroll told us about the main consumer trends driving product innovation in the Californian dairy space, but also discussed how this year’s health and wellness-focused Real California Milk Excelerator (RCME) cohort is blazing a trail for functional dairy.

He said protein remained a major driving force in NPD from the state and is also reflected across the RCME finalists.

Take for example Pluff, a chilled dessert made from Greek yogurt, cream and whey protein all whipped together. “This is probably the most fun name we have in the cohort,” Carroll said. “It’s also delicious, nutritious and high-protein; it's Greek yogurt, heavy cream and whey protein, so pretty unique.”

Category-wise, Pluff is closer to a dessert or a snack than the traditional good-for-you category aimed at active consumers. “It’s a little indulgent, but still good for you,” the VP told us. “It can play in both the dessert and snacking space and what’s interesting is that it’s not a pudding; it’s not yogurt, but something a little different.”

There’s also Smearcase’s cottage cheese-based ice cream, a commercial product that takes the TikTok trend of few years ago into the grocery store. “I’m really excited about this because it’s not as sweet as ice cream. If your perception is that you want the same indulgence of a Hagen Dazs, you’re not going to get that – and I don’t think the consumer would expect that. I think their expectation is that it has to taste good, and it delivers on that.”

Smearcase takes its name from the German word ‘schmierkase’ [pronounced sh’mi:rke:ze] and contains cottage cheese, milk, cane sugar, a protein blend of collagen and whey powder, and flavors and flavor extracts. Per serving, there’s around 13g of protein (40g per an entire 433ml pack) along with 17g of sugar, 4.5g of fat and 90mg of calcium (around 6% of the recommended daily intake).

Carroll told us the company is mostly based on the East Coast – the firm is based out of New York - but is seeking expansion into the West too. “They've entered our accelerator in California because they recognize they're going to need West Coast production as well,” the VP told us. “I don't know of any other [brand that makes cottage cheese ice cream commercially] – I'm sure there will be and there are probably already some startups that don't they don't have a big distribution footprint yet.”

Yet another finalist that majors on protein claims is Todo, a high-protein, high-fiber breakfast smoothie that’s also positioned as a meal replacer. Specifically, the product aims to compete with Fairlife’s Core Power on satiety claims – with Todo claiming to provide 3-4 hours of fullness thanks to its higher fiber content (6g versus 1g for Fairlife's product).

In the beverage space is Stellify, maker of mocktails and dairy-based energy shots with reduced-fat lactose-free milk, natural fruit juice and natural stimulant substances such as caffeine, theobromine and  L-theanine.

“These folks are aseptic beverage processors who decided to develop their own brand. So their product will be shelf-stable dairy and I think there's something pretty exciting about it. It's a big category that dairy really hasn't played in, not in that format.”

That’s because the functional ambient dairy category is ‘close to zero’ in the US right now, he added. “There is a lot of potential. UHT dairy can obviously be marketed away from the cold aisles, but American consumers are so used to buying milk refrigerated; it’s the exact opposite of Europe.”

Also featured in the final are TrueJoy, high-protein frozen Greek yogurt with a focus on low-cal claims, live and active probiotic cultures and naturally high protein; VoyagerMilk, organic powder-based toddler milk; and collagen-infused instant coffee from Projo. “There is a big market in the US for functional coffee – and huge competition that these guys are going to face,” Carroll told us.

More about California’s newly-found love of collagen-infused coffee read in our part-two report, here​.

This year’s competition, organized in partnership with VentureFuel, will culminate during the Future of Dairy Export on November 14, where attendees will be able to meet the finalists. The event will also close with the RCME Final Pitch Event and finalist selection where a panel of judges will award up to $500,000 worth of total value prizing.