In this week’s news, learn how Chinese New Year festivities fueled Fonterra’s sales numbers for dairy products. Take a look at which products were in high demand, see the newest farmgate milk price outlook, and read about New Zealand perspectives for the upcoming dairy exports to China.
Fonterra’s Dairy Sales
Fonterra’s loss in dairy sales from the 2020 pandemic hit is slowly recuperated as Chinese celebrations lifted sales figures. The ingredients from New Zealand’s co-op, notably UHT milk and cream cheese, were used to prepare special themed offers for the Chinese market including gift packs, cheese lollipops, and tea macchiatos. Fonterra reportedly noted a double-digit increase in consumer brand sales this year.
Following the strong demand for dairy products from China, Fonterra also raised its farmgate price outlook from NZ$ 6.90-7.50 to NZ$ 7.30-7.90 per kg of milk solids. According to the co-op’s officials, the interest also comes from South East Asia and the Middle East.
The company’s success allows for an optimistic perspective for other brands to recover from last year’s poor trade when the overall export of New Zealand’s dairy goods fell by 21% in December 2020 compared to the same period in the previous year.
Total dairy shipments to China noted a decrease by $194 million to $740 million in December last year. New Zealand still expects lower revenues from key dairy commodities such as WMP, butter, cream, and cheese in 2021, but the demand for other products is expected to grow. The sales of casein-based products are forecasted to increase from NZ$1.9 to NZ$2.1 billion while the revenue from liquid milk, UHT milk, ice cream, and yogurt is projected to grow from NZ$1.4 to NZ$1.7 billion.
