I contacted dairy people in many of the countries that qualified for the World Cup and put out an appeal on LinkedIn, and here in Dairy Innovation offices, we scoured the websites of many, many dairy companies. We had mixed success, though some of what we found can be seen in this special gallery.
Major sporting events such as the World Cup, the Summer and Winter Olympic Games and so on, attract plenty of food and beverage products that use the popularity of these sporting occasions to raise their profile and generate sales. Traditionally, it’s beer and lager brewers, confectionery manufacturers and snack makers at the forefront of this activity. I observed that these were not necessarily ideal products for an activity where fitness is key.
Would dairy get in on the act, I wondered? I hoped they would, in a big way, but have to admit to being a little disappointed with the response. Actually, I was more than a little bit disappointed – I was very disappointed.
Over the years of writing and reporting about the dairy industry, it has been a recurring theme that the industry is often accused of being too conservative when it comes to marketing itself and its products; too low-key and not very good at singing the praises of milk and dairy. I wondered if this was another case in point.
In recent months, there have been lots of reports about the value of chocolate milk for post-exercise recovery. The most recent was a report about new research that was presented at the recent American College of Sports Medicine conference. Researchers found that chocolate milk offered a recovery advantage to help repair and rebuild muscles, compared to specially designed carbohydrate sports drinks.
Experts agree that the two-hour window after exercise is an important, yet often neglected, part of a fitness routine. After strenuous exercise, this post-workout recovery period is critical for active people at all fitness levels, to help make the most of a workout and stay in top shape for the next workout.
So why was there no World Cup branded chocolate milk? Come on dairy! Did you miss a trick here?
Geoff Platt is editor of Dairy Innovation magazine. Subscribe here.
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