Dairy Council

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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland promote European whey protein concentrate in Chinese market

30 April 2019

The European Union, in conjunction with the Dairy Council for Northern Ireland, is funding a 3–year program to promote European dairy products in China.

On 11 June this year, the Dairy Council of Northern Ireland hosted an EU Dairy Press Dinner in Beijing to introduce the abundant and high–quality dairy products of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to the professional media outlets.

These products are produced to the high EU quality and food safety standards, and because of the world leading traceability programme, all products are fully traceable back to individual farms.  All of these quality and food safety standards are monitored by independent Government Departments, which means buyers can have confidence and trust in products they source from the United Kingdom.

The United Kingdom is one of only a few countries where grass is the main source of dairy cows’ nutrition.  It has high rainfall and rich soil that is ideal for the growth grass. These lush pastures provide the perfect diet for the dairy cows.

Dairy farms in the United Kingdom are family owned, passing from one generation to the next. The entire dairy supply chain is strictly controlled, and all dairy farms are registered and milk–processing plants are approved by the relevant enforcement authority, the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, on behalf of the Food Standards Agency.  Regular, unannounced inspections are carried out on farms and processing plans to ensure all legislation is being complied with and to ensure consumers have high quality safe dairy products. 

Milk used for EU dairy products is of the highest standard. The quality is regularly monitored in accordance with EU Hygiene Regulations with milk purchasers testing all farm supplies regularly. Many of the dairy farms and processing plants in the United Kingdom also belong to voluntary quality assurance schemes providing customers with the confidence that the production of milk and milk products exceed the regulatory requirements. Farms and processing plants are also subject to the supervision of the British Retail Association, on behalf of a large number of retailers. All milk and dairy products are produced to the same high quality and food safety standards, irrespective of whether they will be consumed in the United Kingdom or China.

Some of the leading brands within the DCNI are available in up to 80 countries, and pride themselves in producing dairy–based products with utmost care. Dairy companies from the United Kingdom always set high standards and ensure that all requirements are met.

China is a major player of the dairy industry, since 2010, the Chinese imports of all the product categories have continued to grow at a remarkable rate. In 2016, total shares of EU countries represented more than 21% of the Chinese imports in value. Thanks to many advantages for the nutritional quality of dairy products from the United Kingdom, its penetration has been increasing more strongly than the average growth of European imports with a 58% rise between 2011 and 2016. At present, many European dairy companies have entered the Chinese market, among them, Dale Farm, a Northern Irish company already well implemented in China.

About Dairy Council for Northern Ireland

Located in Belfast, the Dairy Council for Northern Ireland acts on behalf of the dairy industry, promoting the natural goodness and quality of the United Kingdom milk and dairy products. Dairy Council for Northern Ireland plays an important role in convincing the public to dairy products consumption through useful information including researches, scientific experiment, seminar, and supporting campaigns.