Finnish dairy firm Valio has been granted an export permit from Chinese authorities, enabling the firm to export its powdered infant formulas and liquid infant formula to the country.
Valio has exported milk powders and demineralised Valio Demi whey powders for industrial use to China since the 1990s, with Finnish milk powders already used as ingredients for local baby food.
The powdered infant formulas are manufactured at Valio's facility in Lapinlahti, which opened in 2014, while its liquid infant formulas are developed in Turenki.
The company, which also started to export consumer-packaged milk powder to China in 2017, said that the new permits open up China's growing infant formula market to Valio.
Strengthen Our Position
“We want to strengthen our position in China as a trusted supplier of high-quality industrial ingredients. At the same time, we are building a consumer product market," said says Jussi Mattsson, Valio’s category SVP. "Naturally, we are looking to generate new revenue, but profitable growth does not happen in the blink of an eye. Valio is, as of yet, an unknown brand in China, so there is a lot to do.
“Competition for consumer attention between dairies is heated. In China, online stores, markets and baby supply store shelves are filled with choices from dozens of manufacturers. Valio’s strengths include Finland’s pure natural environment and extremely high-quality milk, provided directly by our owners, 5,000 Finnish dairy farms."
A number of Valio production plans have already received approval to manufacture milk powder, cheese and butter for the Chinese market.
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
