The ready-to-drink dairy and soy beverage categories have had a year of up-and-down growth. Milkshake drinks saw a 4.4 decrease in sales to $64 million, according to IRI. the category of milk substitutes and soy milk grew 3.5 percent to $412 million, while sales of RTD milk and milk substitutes gained 3.2 percent to nearly $108.3 million.

Balancing health and taste is a goal of many beverage processors these days. With their intrinsic qualities, dairy products often strike that balance without even trying. Milk continues to be a healthful beverage, particularly for women and children, although U.S. milk consumption has been on the decline. Beverage companies recognized the viability of milk and are launching new milk-based drinks in convenient grab-and-go individual containers.

For the convenience of a meal substitution, Bravo! Foods International Corp., North Palm Beach, Fla., created Bravo! Blenders, a 100 percent milk drink, with a blend of fruits and flavors fortified with vitamins and minerals. They are 100 percent lactose free, low in sugar and have 50 percent more protein than other flavored milks, the company says.

Top milkshake drinks(individual brands)
PRIOR YEAR	DOLLAR % BRAND	CHANGE VS. MARKET SALES PRIOR YEAR		% CHANGE VS.SHARE
NESTLÉ NESQUIK	$18,502,390	33.6	28.5	8.1
HERSHEY’S MILKSHAKE	$11,201,200	-30.6	17.3	-6.5
RICE DREAM	$8,137,858	19.0	12.5	2.5
HERSHEY’S	$6,049,298	-34.8	9.3	-4.3
ODWALLA SUPER PROTEIN	$4,326,328	105.9	6.7	3.6
KERN’S AGUAS FRESCAS	$2,787,978	0.6	4.3	0.2
PRIVATE LABEL	$2,650,412	-18.6	4.1	-0.7
DEAN’S CHOCOLATE RIFFIC	$1,508,334	-11.8	2.3	-0.2
SHAMROCK FARMS	$1,450,753	545.7	2.2	1.9
DON JOSE	$1,275,067	0.6	2.0	0.1
CATEGORY TOTAL	$64,919,080	-4.4	100.0	0.0
Source: Information Resources Inc., Total food, drug and mass merchandise (excluding Wal-Mart) for the 52 weeks ending June 18, 2006.

A company that developed a fun dairy drink specifically for children, Lifeway Foods, Morton Grove, Ill., created ProBugs made with organic whole milk kefir for kids age two to nine. ProBugs contain 10 live and active kefir cultures that give a boost to the digestive and immune systems, the company says.

Starbucks Coffee Co., through its joint venture with Pepsi-Cola Co., released its first coffee-free bottled beverage early this year. Starbucks Strawberries and Crème Frappuccino crème drink, a blend of strawberries and low-fat milk, is the first coffee-free bottled Starbucks Frappuccino crème drink.

In the line of convenient soy drinks, 8th Continent LLC, Minneapolis, a joint venture between General Mills and DuPont Nutrition & Health, developed 8th Continent Refreshers, a refrigerated juice and soy protein blended beverage. Each 8-ounce serving contains fruit juice, 20 percent of the daily value of calcium, 100 percent of the daily value of vitamin C and 6.25 grams of Solae soy protein. BI