Fonterra to focus on immunity, nutrition for beauty and cognition in China

Fonterra is gearing up its China R&D nutrition strategy around beauty and mental health, alongside tapping on to the growing trend for immune health particularly during and after this pandemic period.
It is building an R&D centre in Shanghai, as well as an application centre in Wuhan in 2021 to meet the growing market demands. The Shanghai R&D centre is a collaboration with Anchor Centre for Certification (ACC) – certification and analysis test centre.
The co-own laboratory will be known as the Fonterra-ACC Shanghai Innovation Centre, said Teh Han Chow, CEO of Fonterra Greater China.
Demand for probiotics is growing and NZMP’s proprietary strains, Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus HN001 and Bifidobacterium animalis subspecies lactis HN019 are clinically proven to support digestive health and immunity, and are already in use in super premium milk formula for pregnant women.
Another area of growth is fitness as Chinese consumers are looking for nutrition to help develop muscles while reducing body fats. Nutrition for beauty and well-being are also popular. Teh said, “We are working to unlock new potential in ingredients such as probiotics and Milk Fat Globule Membrane (MFGM) to see how they can benefit consumers in the post-COVID-19 world.”
MFGM is traditionally used in infant nutrition, however NZMP is studying its use for the brain in managing stress and improving brain functions, as animal studies have shown its effectiveness.
The R&D centre will not only focus on functional ingredients but also on consumer science, sensory testing and packaging, to be applied across Fonterra China’s key dairy products that include milk powder, liquid dairy, yoghurt, cheese and cream amongst others.
China is now one of the largest market for Fonterra, accounting for more than ¼ of its global business.