Fonterra launches new brand in China

Fonterra, New Zealand's dairy cooperative and a leading dairy food services player in China, has launched its new brand, Anchor Food Professionals, in Shanghai, in a move designed to take advantage of a fast-expanding dairy market in the Chinese mainland, estimated to have an annual compound growth rate of more than 20 percent.


Market researchers looking at the sector said that new lifestyle concepts are being adopted by Chinese consumers, such as "afternoon tea", "coffee break", and "office pantry".


And analysts said these have driven the growth of consumption of dairy food and beverages, transforming food consumption habits.


They added that helping to sustain the rise in demand are creative new food and beverages which are now finding favor with Chinese consumers.


The managing director of Fonterra's China operation, Christina Zhu, said Anchor Food Professionals would provide western restaurants, bakeries and casual dining restaurants in China with different products ranging from cream and cheese to butter, and the company would also help businesses with their product presentation, pricing, and promotions.


Analysts say that a wide variety of western food and beverages have been penetrating the Chinese market and that consumers' demand for bakery products, such as cakes, bread, dairy drink and desserts such as icecream, is growing fast, which in turn is attracting more players to compete in the developing market.


According to data compiled in April by Dianping Holdings, China's biggest online food service rating website and a key information provider, the size of the food services market in China that uses dairy goods has grown from 71.2 billion yuan ($10.92 billion) in 2012 to 187.2 billion yuan in 2016, and is expected to further grow to 550.8 billion yuan in 2020.


The article transsshipment from China Daily