A rise in second-quarter earnings was not enough to arrest a fall in first-half profits at Dean Foods, the largest dairy group in the US.

Discover B2B Marketing That Performs

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.

Find out more


The company, which has been facing higher milk costs, today (6 August) posted first-half net income of US$79.7m, a fall of 13.6% on the year.


Second-quarter net income, however, jumped 72% to $48.9m, thanks to lower interest costs and an improved showing from the company’s DSD Dairy unit – a result that led chairman and CEO Gregg Engles to praise the business’ performance.


“Overall, the business is executing well in this unprecedented inflationary environment and our near term results reflect the consistent improvement we’ve made since the third quarter of last year,” Engles said. “I’m pleased that we have returned to growth in the second quarter.”


Net sales rose 13% to $6.2bn thanks largely to price increases and increased sales at Dean’s WhiteWave-Morningstar unit.

GlobalData Strategic Intelligence

US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?

Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.

By GlobalData

However, Engles admitted the unit was facing some “challenges”, with margins down in the second quarter due to higher milk costs offsetting price increases.

Just Food Excellence Awards - Nominations Closed

Nominations are now closed for the Just Food Excellence Awards. A big thanks to all the organisations that entered – your response has been outstanding, showcasing exceptional innovation, leadership, and impact.

Excellence in Action
Winning five categories in the 2025 Just Food Excellence Awards, Centric Software is setting the pace for digital transformation in food and FMCG. Explore how its integrated PLM and PXM suite delivers faster launches, smarter compliance and data-driven growth for complex, multi-channel product portfolios.

Discover the Impact