Dairy industry analysts say changes to China’s one child policy should lead to even greater demand for Australian dairy products.
The ruling Communist Party’s latest reforms include allowing more families to have a second child.
China is already the world’s largest importer of dairy products.
Dairy Australia’s group manager of trade and industry strategy, Charlie McElhone, says there’s a huge demand there for Australian-made infant milk formula in China.
«There were about 16 or 17 million babies in born in China last year, that’s with the one child policy,» Mr McElhone said.
«So that’s a lot of mouths to feed, that’s a lot of infant formula, particularly driven by the demand for imported, clean foodstuffs from trusted suppliers like Australia.»
Rabobank dairy analyst Michael Harvey says any changes to China’s population would be significant for Australia’s dairy sector.
«The baby food market in China is already one of the fastest growing products in that market, so any changes to the one child policy would certainly immediately impact that baby products market.»
Professor Hans Hendrischke, of the University of Sydney’s China Studies Centre, says the market for Australian produce in China will continue to grow, regardless of changes to population controls.
«That market is growing as a result of more consumer spending, a growing middle class in China, the small baby boom. The increasing numbers will feed into that, but it will not really change the dynamics dramatically.»
Source: ABC.net