Dairy Giant Dean Foods Looks to Flax Milk for Profits

Ralph Scozzafava—CEO of Dean Foods Co., the largest dairy company in the United States—revealed last week that the company is considering increasing its investment in plant-based brand Good Karma Foods, which creates flax-based milk and yogurt products. “It’s a really, really cool brand, and it’s growing,” Scozzafava told Bloomberg. “It grew pretty dramatically last year.” In 2017, Dean Foods invested a minority stake in Good Karma for an undisclosed amount in an effort to diversify its plant-based portfolio, according to Scozzafava. In its third fiscal quarter for 2017, the dairy company reported a 91-percent decrease in profits, and hit a six-year low in stock-share values last month. To mitigate its losses, Dean Foods will end contracts with a number of its animal-based milk suppliers on May 31.