Milk and health, but also milk and environment, are among the most searched associations online by Italians.
This is the result of the Popularity Analysis by Nomisma, carried out within the European campaign “Think Milk, Taste Europe, Be Smart”, promoted by Confcooperative with the co-financing of the European Commission.
Using Google Trends data from April 2024 to March 2025, the analysis offers insights into how Italians connect milk and dairy products with health, nutrition, and sustainability.
Milk/health: the strongest online connection
Nomisma’s study shows that the word “milk” is most frequently associated with health.
This connection recorded the highest search volume, outperforming both “cheese” and “dairy”.
Interest in milk was especially strong in Southern Italy – including Calabria, Sicily, Campania, Basilicata, and Apulia. Related searches also highlighted topics such as “hay milk”, “raw milk”, and questions about milk consumption for children.
Cheese and health: more popular in Northern Italy
Although “cheese” generated fewer searches than milk, interest has slightly grown over the past year.
Related searches were focused on health, with terms such as fat, raw milk, & hypercholesterolemia showing strong relevance.
Cheese searches were concentrated in Northern Italy, particularly in Valle d’Aosta, Trentino-Alto Adige, Liguria, Veneto, and Tuscany. As with milk, the most frequent association remains with health, while the connection between cheese and environment is less common.
Expert insights
“This analysis provides us with valuable insights into the media impact of our campaign” – commented Giovanni Guarneri, representative of the dairy sector at Alleanza delle Cooperative Agroalimentari.
“The fact that users associate milk and cheese not only with health but also with the environment confirms how crucial it is to keep investing in educational initiatives and in transparent, up-to-date communication about dairy products and their social impact”.
Promoting milk and health together helps shape informed choices, supporting wellness, sustainability, and the consumer awareness.
