China rejuvenates dairy sector

China has made significant headway in rejuvenating its dairy sector, with the production of raw or unpasteurized milk from January to September rising by 5.2 percent year-on-year, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said on Wednesday.

For the same period, the production of dairy products has also increased by 8.8 percent year-on-year, and each cow in China average produces about 7.8 metric tons of milk per one lactation cycle — which lasts about 300 days — up by 0.4 tons, according to Wang Junxun, an official with the ministry's animal husbandry and veterinary bureau.

The quality and safety of raw milk — seen as the barometer for the entire dairy industry — has also improved greatly in recent years, said Wang Jiaqi, director of the inspection center that examines the quality of milk and milk products. The center is affiliated to the ministry.

"Test results for the volume of bacteria, which indicates safety level, and for milk fat and protein, which reflects its nutritional value, have both reached the level of developed countries," he said.

In December, the ministry released a guideline with eight other government bodies that aims to achieve a total annual production of 45 million tons of liquid milk by 2025 by promoting larger-scale dairy farms and boosting their productivity.

Since the rollout of the guideline, the central government has allocated 4 billion yuan ($570 million) for the sector. The large amount is mainly devoted to scaling up farms growing alfalfa hay, a high quality animal feed for cows, as well as to refitting family-owned dairy farms, according to the ministry.

Local authorities have also invested a total of 2 billion yuan into supporting farmers to expand cow herds and improve their capability to manufacture value-added milk products.

Despite the recent progress, Wang Junxun from the ministry, said more efforts are needed to cut production costs to increase income for farmers and boost their confidence in the industry.

"The average breeding cost across China's dairy industry is 40 to 60 percent higher than that in developed countries," according to Wang. "For instance, the price of corn products that are widely used as feed is 60 percent higher than the global average."

Meanwhile, the domestic market for dairy products, especially the categories of pasteurized milk and dry milk products such as cheese, butter, and milk powder, also holds massive potential, he added.

"China produced about 26.8 million tons of milk products last year, with dry milk products accounting for less than 30 percent. The proportion in developed countries usually stands at 70 percent," he said.