Is the Huge Profit Era of Imported Milk Agency Coming to an End?

Mr. Zhang, who was browsing his phone late at night, was suddenly attracted by a push notification: A popular online blogger was unboxing fresh milk airlifted from New Zealand, and thousands of "please purchase on my behalf" comments flooded into the comment section instantly. Behind this lies a blue ocean market worth hundreds of billions - the agency business of imported dairy products. From infant formula to adult cheese, the demand of Chinese consumers for high-quality dairy products is growing at an annual rate of 15%.

The back-end data of Ms. Li's cross-border e-commerce reveals the truth: The repurchase rate of her Australian A2 milk powder link is as high as 73%. Driven by both quality anxiety and consumer upgrading, consumers are willing to pay a 30%-50% premium for imported dairy products. It is worth noting that with the maturity of cold chain technology, the import volume of liquid milk has skyrocketed by 400% in three years.

• The Infant Market: Accounting for 55% of the total import volume, products with EU organic certification are the most favored.
• Adult Nutritional Products: High-calcium, low-fat milk and functional yogurt have the fastest growth rates.
• Baking Ingredients: French butter and Italian mascarpone have become standard in home baking.

At an industry exchange meeting, Mr. Wang, who had been in the business for five years, shared his lessons: "Those who thought they could make money effortlessly just by getting the agency rights, 90% of them couldn't survive the first year." There are three key challenges in this industry:

1. The Maze of Qualifications: Imported dairy products need to meet both the sanitary registration of the country of origin and the filing with Chinese customs. Infant formula also needs to pass the formula registration system, and the whole process takes 6 - 12 months.

2. The Cold Chain Dilemma: Frozen cheese at -18℃ and chilled fresh milk at 4℃ require different temperature control solutions, and the transportation cost may eat up 30% of the gross profit.

3. The Channel Predicament: The barcode fee in offline supermarkets can be as high as 50,000 yuan per single item, and the traffic cost on e-commerce platforms has tripled in recent years.

At the recently held dairy product import seminar, the director of Zhongshitong's supply chain proposed a "three-step" strategy:

• The Novice Stage: Choose cheese and milk powder with lower value for a trial run, and control each batch within a 20-foot container.
• The Intermediate Stage: Sign an exclusive agency agreement with overseas factories to strive for favorable landed prices.
• The Mature Stage: Establish an in-house testing laboratory to shorten the customs clearance time to within three working days.

While everyone is scrambling for the agency rights of milk powder, the shrewd Ms. Zhang has already started to the camel milk track. Data from a laboratory in Dubai shows that the lactoferrin content in camel milk is three times that of cow milk, and it is less likely to cause lactose intolerance. The growth rate of this niche category reached 210% last year, confirming the iron rule in the industry: A differentiated product matrix is the key to sustainable profitability.

Have you noticed that Bulgarian goat cheese has started to appear in the community group buying groups? Welcome to share the new trends in dairy consumption that you have observed in the comment section, or send a private message to obtain the 2024 Imported Dairy Product Customs Clearance White Paper. Perhaps the next one to change the industry landscape is you who are reading this article.