In addition to the lowest volume growth in five years, the dairy juice blends market saw the lowest percentage growth in value in five years in 2014. The price increases for the category, much like other dairy beverages, fluctuate year on year. After a larger increase in 2013, the pricing saw little change in 2014, causing the product value to increase at a slower rate compared to the historical movement.
All channels within the dairy juice blends category experienced growth in 2014, most notably the bottom end retail channel. Manufacturers are shifting focus away from top end retail, which experienced an increase in 2014, due to the feeling (as seen in many categories) that the top end retail industry is reaching saturation point.
The Eastern Cape was the only region to experience a decline in volume, following a shift in focus by several dairies. Unlike other dairy categories, growth was seen in the major metropolitan regions in 2014, though Mpumalanga experienced one of the highest growths in the category.
