MilkPEP conducted tests to evaluate the opportunity for milk vending in various settings — business and industry (B&I); college and university; public venues; and schools. The tests involved 150 venders placed in four markets. Three vender types were used — Royal Live-Display, Royal Closed-Front, Dixie-Narco Glass-Front — and featured 12-oz., 14-oz., and 16-oz. plastic milk packages in a range of flavors and a mix of local processor and national brands. Some machines also included non-milk products for comparison, including juices and fruit drinks (local processor and branded), water and sports drinks.

The results show vended milk represents a huge (and largely untapped) incremental sales opportunity in all of these locations. The tests also showed:

• Average weekly sales were 397 units per vending machine in B&I.
• Milk spoilage was a non-issue at less than 0.4%.
• Vended milk sales were incremental. Overall vending bank sales increased 17% from the same time period in the prior year with 40% of the additional sales coming from milk.
• Post-installation sales retention levels were high — nearly 80% across all vendors — better than the industry average of 50-60%.
• Variety drives sales. Tests showed that taking advantage of milk's new, expanded product mix can nearly double sales. Vendors that carried 7+ SKUs sold almost twice as much as those carrying only 4 milk products.
• Milk's not just for kids — on average B&I locations outsold school locations on a per capita basis (0.27 units per person vs. 0.20 units per person).

Click here for full study results.

Schools

Success Story #2
A school milk vending program grew to more than 200 machines in its first year.

Success Story #3
To improve sales, a school district added "branded" shelf-stable milk and milk vending options to supplement its offerings from a local dairy.

In one school district of 2,900 students, the high school's student council wanted better beverage options and approached their school food service director about obtaining a milk vending machine; she agreed due to the additional nutritional beverage options it would provide. The results: over a two-year period, vended milk sales increased from 250 to 400 pints per week! The milk machine was more popular than the juice machine and was the only machine that students would line up in front of to make a purchase.

Success Story #4
This mid-sized school district in Southeastern US brought in plastic bottles for vending, meal lines and a la carte, and increased milk consumption without having to raise prices to students.

Success Story #5
This mid-sized school district in Central US worked with the local processor to introduce plastic bottles and additional flavors into school vending, a la carte and meal line, and increased milk consumption by nearly 75%.

Success Story #6
This large Southeastern US school district saw significant milk volume increases and a 50% increase in consumption when it introduced plastic containers for vending and meal lines, and milk coolers for a la carte.

Success Story #7
The SFD in this mid-sized Southeastern US school district knew that getting kids to drink more milk is the "right thing to do". She introduced plastic bottles and a variety of flavors that "kids want" and watched overall consumption increase.

Success Story #8
This large western city school district added bottled flavored milk to the meal line and saw total milk consumption and meal participation levels increase dramatically.

Success Story #9
This rural upper mid west school district was able to increase students' milk consumption by 40% with a vending program that pays it own way.

Success Story #10
This small upper mid-west school district used two milk vending machines to increase milk consumption, especially among the high school students. After three years, machine sales continue to rise, consumption is up 9% and both machines are now paid off.

Success Story #11
This mid-western city's school district paid off it's high school vending machine in one month and has seen milk consumption increase much more than they expected.

Success Story #12
This mid-western city's school district hasd had huge success with its vending machine, which has substantially increased milk consumption and milk sales throughout the cafeteria.