Whey protein boom reshapes US dairy industry

Rising demand for whey protein is changing the US dairy business as high-protein diets spread through social media and into supermarket products.

Whey, once treated as a cheesemaking byproduct, is now used in protein powders, bars, cereals, bagels, pretzels, instant noodles and branded drinks. Major food companies have added high-protein products, including Frito-Lay's Protein Nacho Cheese Doritos and Starbucks high-protein beverages.

Chuck Nicholson, a professor of supply chain management at Penn State University, told AFP that social media trends such as “protein-maxxing” have helped drive demand. He also said users of weight-loss drugs including Wegovy and Ozempic are being advised to raise protein intake to preserve muscle mass.

US nutrition guidelines updated in March raised recommended daily protein intake from 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight to 1.2-1.6 grams. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said earlier this year that protein and healthy fats were “wrongly discouraged” in earlier guidance.

The boom has limits. Whey comes from cheese production and needs specialised equipment to turn it into higher-protein concentrates and isolates. Nicholson said the industry faces constraints in milk supply, cheese capacity and whey-processing capacity.

Michael Dykes, CEO of the International Dairy Foods Association, said dairy companies have invested $13 billion in new capacity, technology and supply chain optimisation to meet demand.

Joshua White, an expert at dairy product marketer T.C. Jacoby & Co., said demand has still exceeded the added capacity. Industry data show whey prices have risen about 40 percent in recent months, while high-concentrate whey protein has risen 150 percent.

Nicholson said returns on whey are now larger than returns on cheese, though dairy industry expert Kathleen Noble Wolfley cautioned that cheese production still outweighs whey production in the United States.