Americans are drinking milk less frequently

U.S. fluid milk consumption has fallen over the last 40 years from an average of 0.96 cups per person per day in 1970 to 0.61 cups in 2010. A recent ERS study found that changes in the frequency of drinking milk since the 1970s, not in portion sizes, contributed to the trend. Between 1977-78 and 2007-08, the share of children age 2-12 that did not drink fluid milk on a given day rose from 12 percent to 24 percent, while the share that drank milk three or more times per day dropped from 31 to 18 percent. The share of teenagers and adults who did not drink fluid milk on a given day rose from 41 to 54 percent, and the share that drank milk three or more times fell from 13 to 4 percent. This chart appears in the ERS report, Why Are Americans Consuming Less Fluid Milk? A Look at Generational Differences in Intake Frequency, ERR-149, released May 29, 2013.

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