SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. and MODESTO, Calif. – Some months get all the fun. June is packed full of celebrations from graduations and weddings to Father's Day and the official first day of summer. June is THE party month. But there's an even better excuse to party this June that doesn't require sending out invitations or buying gifts. It's National Dairy Month honoring all those dairy products that make celebrating fun: Real California milk, cheese, butter, ice cream, yogurt, sour cream and creme fraiche.
As the number one fluid milk, butter, ice cream, yogurt and nonfat dry milk producing state in the nation and number two for cheese production, California dairy products are certainly the guests of honor at this month-long dairypalooza. After all, dairy is the secret to making delicious party foods. And, when you look for the Real California Milk and Cheese seals on dairy products sold in California and nationwide, you know you're getting a quality product made with 100% California milk from one of California's 1620 dairy families. To this day, 99% of California dairy farms remain family owned.
Some amazing dairy facts: In 2010, California produced 40.4 billion pounds of milk – that's 21% of the nations milk supply. California is also the leading producer of delicious butter (557.1 million lbs in 2010), yogurt (648.9 million lbs in 2010) and ice cream (136.5 million gals in 2010) in the U.S. and over 2 billion pounds of cheese. Americans really are a cheesy bunch…in 2009 total U.S. cheese consumption was the highest to date at 32.9 pounds per capita*!
While every day is a great day to enjoy California dairy products, in honor of June Dairy Month, the California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB) has created the 30 Days of Dairy calendar. Packed with tips, recipe ideas/links and fun facts about dairy, this calendar is a delicious way to help you and your readers get your dairy on every day this month. Consider it a day-by-day guide to getting the very best that California dairy has to offer (and enjoying the benefits of dairy nutrition at the same time).
To download the 30 Days of Dairy calendar, visit http://www.realcaliforniamilk.com/recipes/.
About the California Milk Advisory Board
The California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB), an instrumentality of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, is funded by the state's more than 1,620 dairy families. With headquarters in South San Francisco and Modesto, the CMAB is one of the largest commodity boards in the United States. The CMAB executes advertising, public relations, research and retail and foodservice promotional programs on behalf of California dairy products, including Real California Milk and Real California Cheese. For more information on California dairy products, visit www.RealCaliforniaMilk.com.
*International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA)
Source: California Milk Advisory Board