Coca-Cola to release expensive milk that will 'rain money'

Fairlife, which will hit US shelves next month, will cost twice as much as standard milk currently sold in shops, the company admitted.However, Coca-Cola's milk will contain higher protein, lower sugar and no lactose."Our vision for the nutrition beverage business and the milk product ... has a proprietary milk filtering process that allows you to increase protein by 50pc, take sugar down by 30pc, and have no lactose, and a milk that’s premiumised and taste better and we’ll charge twice as much for it as the milk we used to buying in a jug," Sandy Douglas, senior vice-president and global chief customer officer, told the Morgan Stanley Global Consumer Conference.Mr Douglas said he expects Coca-Cola's milk to build popularity slowly but maintained that the Fairlife business had "tremendous growth potential"."We’re going to be investing in the milk business for a while to build the brand so it won’t rain money in the early couple of years. But ... when you do it well it rains money later," he added.Coca-Cola is entering the dairy market at a turnbulent time. Sales of conventional milk are falling in the US, while revenues of flavoured and higher-protein milk are climbing.Dean Foods, the largest milk processor in the US, has closed plants and cut its full-year adjusted profit forecast for this year.Milk prices have been rising in the US since 2008, when China started sourcing foreign-made milk powder and infant formula after six babies died and more than 300,000 children fell ill due to local milk products contaminated with melamine.Dean Foods said raw milk prices rose 22pc in the first quarter ended March 31. Prices continue to rise, increasing 4pc between March and May, the company said.US milk production rose just 1pc between January and March, Department of Agriculture said.Bakudaily.Az