Land O’Lakes in Bankruptcy

[aaronatthedoublef]

Actually it is Dean Foods that has filedDean Foods that has filedDean Foods that has filed.

It's chapter 11 so they hope to reorganize. Honestly I stopped buying LOL some time ago because it is just too expensive and Whole Foods and Trader Joe's both offer comparable products at about half the price. Plus I do not like the redesign of the butter box as little boys can no longer do something vaguely obscene with it.

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[BakerAunt]

I like the Deans brand of milk, so I hope that they can reorganize.

[BakerAunt]

I subscribe to a public radio newsletter (Marketplace). It mentioned the Land o' Lakes bankruptcy. I thought the following "By the Numbers" facts were interesting:

26%--how much milk consumption has declined

1.6 billion: money brought in by "alternative milk" products.

While some people have milk allergies or are lactose intolerant, and some may be vegan, I wonder if this is the equivalent of the carbohydrate scare that that shook up the bakery industry a few years ago. I've been surprised at the number of alternative "milks" at Aldi's and Kroger, even as I have to scrounge to find buttermilk. Most of the alternative "milks" don't have the calcium content of regular milk.

I'm wondering why butter is having such a hard time. I had to give it up, almost completely, due to high cholesterol, but most of the dessert recipes out there are rolling in butter.

I hope Land o' Lakes light butter-canola spread continues to be available because I don't see another option for me.

• This reply was modified 5 years ago by BakerAunt.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Is it butter? Or is it Land O'Lakes butter? I go through quite a bit and I quit using LOL because it is over twice as expensive as Trader Joe's and Whole Foods store brand. It is even more expensive than the organic store brand. And without being appreciably better. I am not sure why it is so much more but it is.

As for milk, my kids drink their share.

And as for plant-based alternatives, there was a funny article that I cannot find now where a beef rancher said "where would your organic, plant-based farms be without my manure".

[BakerAunt]

More about Deans and the changing milk market:

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/01/dairy-farmers-are-struggling-as-they-are-squeezed-out-of-a-changing-milk-market.html?utm_campaign=MMS_Newsletter_20191115&utm_medium=email&utm_source=sfmc_Newsletter&utm_content=The%20end%20of%20cereal%20monogamy

[aaronatthedoublef]

Re-reading my last post it seems kind of mean. Sorry for that.

Milk is going through an interesting moment as many are declaring it "bad" for a variety of reasons.

Butter went through it's "bad for you" moment years ago and people started substituting margarine that it turns out was actually worse for you. And after the whole non-fat movement we now are told that a certain amount of fat, even "bad" fat is necessary.

The more things change the more they stay the same.

[Mike Nolan]

In many ways, what happened to Dean Foods is a result of decades of government interference in and mismanagement of agricultural markets. The current shift to plant-based foods increased the pressure. And interestingly enough, it was probably a more recent market disrupter, WalMart, that provided the final blow. When they set up their own internal dairy production system and dropped Dean Foods as a supplier, Dean Foods was left with too many supplier contracts and not enough markets to absorb the excess product in a heavily regulated marketplace.

[aaronatthedoublef]

As jarring as this was for the dairies Dean actually was pretty upright about this in ending contracts with 90 days notice and continuing to pay their bills. What has usually happened in the Northeast (and in bankruptcies in general) is that a business will continue to purchase from suppliers and just not pay their bills then eliminate or greatly reduce the debt when they file.

The Walmart stores by us are selling their own brand, Great Value, and then one, well known national brand in the three stores by me.

There are even companies that create "special entities" that have no assets but do the purchasing. They then put the special entity into bankruptcy but it has no assets for creditors to attach and so the creditors are left holding the bag.

[BakerAunt]

Aaron makes a good point about fat in that we know that there are different kinds of fat and that to some extent it depends on individual physiology, age, and perhaps gender. Heart disease is actually the leading cause of death for women.

I'm still shocked that my cholesterol was so high, and that while cutting out most saturated fat (i.e.--staying below 11 grams per day) dropped it significantly, it's still high. My rule of thumb is that if I am going to eat an item with saturated fat, it must have other important vitamins and minerals. Thus, I have not cut out eggs or olive oil or canola oil or 1% milk, but I cut my butter consumption to a tiny amount. (I also gave up chocolate candies, tortilla chips, chicken skin.) When I bake, I use canola or olive oil, and occasionally, I use grapeseed oil for a more neutral taste. I tried nonfat regular yogurt, but I cannot get one here that does not have additives to thicken it, and the taste is not so great. I can get Chobani nonfat Greek yogurt, which does not have the additives and tastes good.

One of my concerns about the collapse of dairy--and a public perception that dairy is "bad,"--is that calcium is needed for bone development, and I wonder if the plant-based "milk" drinkers will be having issues with that down the road.

[Italiancook]

Thanks, Aaron, for letting us know. I use LOL butter that I usually buy in quantity at half price and freeze. I'm concerned that the reorganization may mean they reformulate their butter and I won't like it any longer. I've seen that happen before. There isn't a Trader's Joe or Whole Foods within a distance I'm willing to travel for butter, but it's good to know what you use, Aaron. If I get desperate, I'll make the drive.

[Mike Nolan]

I've bought butter at Sams, it doesn't seem any better or worse than house brands at the grocery store. I was never all that impressed with LOL butter over other brands, the European ones are different, higher fat and somewhat different taste, probably because the cream is cultured before it is churned. (Higher fat is controlled by how much buttermilk you press out, in the USA I think it has to be a minimum of 80% butterfat and most dairies aren't going to go higher unless they can charge a higher price for it.)

[aaronatthedoublef]

I liked LOL because it was consistent and store brands out west (when I really started baking regularly) and even some name brands were bland and often varied from lot to lot where I could taste it. A friend who grew up in Wisconsin said West Coast cows don't have the cold winters of midwestern cows so their milk fat is not as rich. Doesn't sound like a good reason but I did notice a difference between dairy from west vs east of the Mississippi.

I've never tried European butters for baking. And we do have some cultured butters in our grocery stores so maybe I'll try one of those and see if anyone notices the difference in baked goods.

[BakerAunt]

The PBS News Hour reported last night that Borden's has filed for bankruptcy. That's another major dairy organization.

Meanwhile, the Bon Appetit staff, in their January cooking month e-mail specials, are emphasizing little or no dairy as a way to "save the planet." While I don't mind having recipes that don't rely so heavily on cheese and butter, I'm not sure their alternative choices are superior, either nutritionally or in terms of saving the planet. (Almonds for example require a lot of water to grow, and almond milk wastes a good deal of the nut.) I wish that they would also look at the need for calcium in the diet, and if they want to do no dairy, make a concerted effort to insure that calcium needs are met with as little supplementation as necessary.

• This reply was modified 4 years, 10 months ago by BakerAunt.

[Mike Nolan]

Based on the Wall Street Journal article on the Borden's bankruptcy, this one could get a bit messy, the major creditors were apparently unaware the Chapter 11 filing was coming.

[navlys]

What is truth these days? The power of the media is ridiculous. So sad that we believe and regurgitate whatever is printed on the internet. Oh well I guess that's life!

[Author]

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