EASY-POUR MILK JUG STYLED FOR CHILDREN.

Byline: Chris Sieroty Staff Writer

VAN NUYS - Got milk, too much milk? That's the problem that has driven dairy producers to radically change the package - odd-shaped, bright-colored bottles and easy to pour pitcher-like jugs are rapidly taking the place of cartons.

In Los Angeles, single-serve bottles of flavored milk decorated with festive typography on colored bottles have been hard to keep in stock since they were first introduced a few months ago.

In coming months, milk in pitcher-like jugs so easy to pour even a 4-year-old can use it without spilling are likely to be introduced in California, the nation's largest milk producer, after being successfully test marketed in several states back East.

Milk Chug, the flavored milk introduced locally by Alta Dena Dairy, is now available at supermarkets and convenience stores throughout the Greater San Fernando Valley. Milk Chug is produced by Alta Dena's parent company, Dean Foods Co. of Franklin Park, Ill.

Sales totaled $100 million in 1999 and are projected to double to $200 million this year, as the product is introduced nationwide, thanks to a new technology Dean Foods says will triple the shelf life of milk to six weeks or more.

``The nationwide campaign is a monumental step for the milk industry,'' said Susan Ruland, a spokeswoman for the Washington-based International Dairy Foods Association.

For years, milk has been steadily losing market share to soft drinks, juice, bottled water and other beverages. Milk consumption dropped from 19.4 gallons per person in 1988 to 18.2 gallons in 1998.

``They are already successful, and companies tell us they have experienced double and even triple sales figures by simply changing the package,'' said Ruland.

At the Alta Dena drive-through store in Van Nuys, thirsty customers were out of luck Wednesday as the popular drinks were sold out. According to a store employee, a delivery of Milk Chugs was due later this week.

Milk Chugs are available in half pints, pints and quarts. Flavors include chocolate milk, strawberry milk and eggnog, along with the standard whole milk, reduced-fat milk and fat-free milk.

Meanwhile, Krispy Kreme doughnuts has hitched a ride on the flavored milk bandwagon by replacing the standard pint-size milk carton with Milk Chug. A pint of chocolate or Vitamin D Milk Chug sells at Krispy Kreme for $1.25.

So far there's been no significant difference in terms of sales, said Krispy Kreme manager Ken Loumann, but the product has only been available for a little over two months.

Milk Chugs are available in three sizes at most local grocery stores. At Albertsons, the pint-size bottles sell for $1.09, while a quart sells for $1.79 and a six-pack of half-pint bottles sells for $3.69.

The drinks are an alternative to vitamin supplements, orange juice and soda, said Ruland.

``Instead of popping a pill,'' Ruland said, consumers should ``try a glass of milk to get the vitamins you need.''

The new three-liter milk jugs are aimed for younger kids and their parents. First introduced in Canton, Ohio, last year, the new jug was designed so a child could pour a glass by tilting the bottle rather than lifting it up.

So far, the ``rock and pour'' jug can be found only in limited markets, primarily in Ohio, Michigan and New York, but it soon will be available in Virginia and North Carolina.

Dallas-based Suiza Foods, the nation's biggest dairy processor, is test-marketing an oval-shape jug of its own in New England, Nevada and Michigan.

- The Associated Press contributed to this report.

MILK: THE MOTHER OF INVENTION

The dairy industry has generated a variation of a familiar design to better compete in the beverage market.

(drawing of newly-designed milk container)

Introduced last year, the three-liter ``rock and pour'' jug can be used by young children.

SOURCE: International Dairy Foods Association

Associated Press

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- color) Alexandria Jansen, 4, of Gaithersburg, Md., adds milk to her cereal from the new three-quart milk bottle.

Jessica Tefft/Associated Press

(2) Milk Chug, the flavored milk introduced locally by Alta Dena Dairy, is now available at supermarkets and convenience stores throughout the Greater San Fernando Valley.

David Sprague/Staff Photographer

Box: MILK: THE MOTHER OF INVENTION (see text)