Yoghurt is a product many are familiar with and has been around for a long time. Recently, the popularity for new types of healthy low-fat yoghurts skyrocketed going from a $60 million industry in 2005 to a 1,5$ billion industry in 2011 ¹. The product packs a lot of protein without a lot of carbohydrates or fat. The popularity has also affected other similar products such as Skyr from Iceland ² . What kind of market has just opened itself up from nowhere, and what drives people towards this kind of new yoghurt? This growth is in the US alone, can one perhaps spread the effect to other countries or is this just a fad which will disappear as soon as it came?

The product in itself is quite simple. It does not cost very much, although it is more expensive than regular yoghurt. The price difference between Greek yoghurt, Skyr and regular yoghurt can be defended because the former two are regarded as healthier because of the protein and absence of fat. The customer sees the difference in the main product in tasting it and reading the nutrition label, then he already have had to buy it. This means communicating the message is very important: if people don’t know the difference, why shouldn’t they just pick regular yoghurt?

Greek yoghurt are for people who want to be healthy, communicate to others that they are healthy, and are not afraid to try new things. The nature of the product is simple, but I believe that is a certain kind of people who choose this product. It is not necessary and it is not something many people are used to eating. During this fall we will try to understand more about what can push people towards purchasing their first pot of Greek yoghurt or Skyr.

Cécile Vendeville

¹ http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2011/08/how-did-greek-yogurt-get-so-popular/244025/

² http://midafternoonsnack.wordpress.com/2013/01/31/love-greek-yogurt-you-might-want-to-try-skyr/

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