The excitement for full-fat dairy has gone full circle, with the media reporting rises in sales of whole milk, full-fat yogurts, cheese and butter across all the major supermarkets. Yippee for dairy!

Here are at Yeo Valley Organic, we shared that whole milk sales were growing twice as fast as semi- skimmed. Not only that, sales of low and fat-free yogurt had fallen 4% and 7% respectively in the past year, while full-fat yogurts were just as popular as ever.

It was a similar picture in Waitrose too, where sales of own-label whole milk rose 6.5% in February against the same month the previous year. Its sales of spreadable butter rose by 20% over the same period, while sun- flower spreads fell 30%. It looks like it wasn’t just a taste for full-fat at home, with Marks & Spencer cafés switching to whole milk as their default for coffees, unless a customer requests otherwise, saying it makes a smoother coffee.

“As people become more focused on their gut health and look to add more whole foods into their diets, the market for low-fat dairy products is starting to decline,” says Rachel Aldridge, milk and cream buyer for Waitrose. Which was backed up by a survey of 2,000 Waitrose shoppers which found a third had switched from eating a low-fat dairy product to a full-fat one in the past year.

“When manufacturers remove the fat, many healthy compounds like omega-3 and some vitamins may be removed at the same time…Studies have failed to show any good evidence that low-fat dairy is better than full-fat dairy,” says Professor of Epidemiology Tim Spector.

“Full-fat yoghurts contain live cultures to support your gut microbiome which low-fat versions rarely do. Low-fat versions are often packed with additives and sweeteners,” added Dr Tim Spector, in The Times last month.

This seems like great news to us here at Yeo, where the quality of our organic ingredients helps to create the creamy, delicious food range you know and love. And if you’re looking for more ways to get those healthy dairy fats into your diet, here’s a few of our new favourite recipes we’ve been working on.