Generic advertising increased fluid milk sales about 6%, says USDA, or 18.1 billion pounds, between September 1984 and September 1997.  Cheese sales increased about 6.8 million pounds, milk equivalent, during the same period because of increased generic advertising.

The advertising is funded by a 15-cents per hundredweight assessment on producers of milk sold commercially.

USDA also says the activities of the National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board also contributed to increased milk sales over the past year.  Gross returns to dairy farmers between September 1984 and September 1997 increased by %$3.44 for each $1 spent on generic advertising.

The report is titled Analyses of Generic Dairy Advertising, 1984-97, and is available from USDA's Economic Research Service.