China’s US$16 billion infant formula market is the world’s largest and might also be one of the world’s most developed due to the presence of international players like a2, Danone and Nestle, as well as strong domestic brands like Feihe, Yili and Junlebao competing for market shares in a tightly controlled yet competitive segment.
Domestic brands have now overtaken foreign brands to be the leading players in this market with Feihe alone holding more than 20% share. Meanwhile, some domestic brands like Junlebao caters more to the lower-tier cities due to their affordable pricing, thereby capturing an important market where most of the births in China took place.
Chinese brands have also moved beyond just supplying basic milk powder. With intensive R&D capabilities, brands like Feihe and Yili have introduced formulas containing HMOs, enriched-protein and specialised nutrition for cognitive and immune support.
Presently, China accounted for more than a third of the global infant formula market, as such the world is also using China as an important reference point or case study for future success or failure of new product launches particularly within the infant formula segment. Strict national regulations in China governed by the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) require companies to do extensive product testing before they can even go through another round of rigorous market registration, on top of the necessity to comply with the latest nutritional standards.
Upon commercialisation, infant formula brands will still need to gain the attention and confidence of parents who are the main decision makers when it comes to purchase. In the latest research conducted by Mintel, Chinese parents emphasise the most on Lactoferrin content followed by HMOs in the product when purchasing infant milk formula in 2025. (see Chart 1.0)
