WASHINGTON — With Americans consuming more butter and cheese than ever, the dairy industry saw per capita dairy consumption match an all-time high of 661 pounds per person in 2023, as revealed in the latest data from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).

The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) pointed out that the USDA’s report included record levels for cheese (42.3 pounds per person) and butter (6.5 pounds) in 2023.

During the previous 10 years, IDFA noted, domestic per capita cheese consumption increased by 19% and butter consumption grew by 18%, while per capita total dairy consumption over the past five years improved by 3%.

“Dairy is one of the most nutritionally complete foods available,” IDFA president and chief executive officer Michael Dykes said. “Milk, cheese, yogurt, whey-protein-infused fitness beverages and many other dairy foods contain up to 13 essential nutrients, making dairy one of the most nutrient dense foods available. For flavor, affordability, and nutrition, people of all ages are choosing dairy more than ever.”

Cottage cheese consumption reached 2.1 pounds per person in 2023, which IDFA said was the highest total for the product since 2019.

Yogurt also proved to remain popular with consumers, with its consumption level reaching 13.8 pounds per person – 2% higher than the previous year. IDFA highlighted that yogurt consumption surged by 60% over the course of the past two decades.

US consumers also consumed 661 pounds of dairy per person in 2021. It fell to 653 pounds in 2022 before rebounding in the following year.