China focus: Megmilk taps into China’s healthy ageing market, FSMP growth potential, CBEC supply chain woes, infant formula product labelling, and more
Megmilk Snow Brand eyes ageing population in China with debut of bone health ingredient
The ageing population in China underscores major opportunities in the nutrition space, which Japan dairy company Megmilk Snow Brand aims to tap into.
The firm introduced its proprietary functional ingredient MBP (Milk Basic Protein), which claims to have multiple benefits for bone health, to the China market at the recent Hi & Fi Asia-China in Shanghai.
Megmilk believes it can overcome the strong competition in the country’s healthy ageing market through product quality and science-backed evidence, although it admits the process “might take some time”.
FSMP growth potential is huge, but entry barriers remain high – Nestle Health Science China
There is huge growth potential in China’s Food for Special Medical Purposes (FSMP) sector, but barriers of entry remain high, says Nestle Health Science China.
FSMPs are meant for providing nutritional support to individuals suffering from a specific disease, disorder, or medical condition.
Prior to 2020, most FSMPs approved were manufactured by overseas firms but since then, more were coming from the domestic market. As of May 30, 115 FSMPs from 39 companies have been approved by Chinese authorities.
“Imported raw ingredients” and similar terms banned in China’s infant formula product labelling from Oct 1
Chinese authorities are imposing stricter rules on the infant formula industry, with terms such as “imported raw ingredients” and “imported milk source” banned on all product labelling from October 1, 2023.
The State Administration of Market Regulation (SAMR) explained the newly updated Registration of Infant Milk Powder Formula Regulation on a press conference held on July 10.
According to the SAMR, the new rules will focus on three aspects, namely introducing stricter requirements on product registration and on-site inspection, standardising product labelling, and promoting R&D across the industry.
China CBEC phenomenon: Tmall Global on overcoming supplements supply chain woes as products hit peak popularity
The cross-border e-commerce (CBEC) sector in China has been growing at nearly 18%, while that of the health supplement industry has been growing at around 6% in recent years.
Overseas supplements sold into China via CBEC can get popular easily, but supply chain challenges are making it difficult for brands to replenish their goods in time, especially when they are highly popular, says Zhou Yuan, head of health products at Tmall Global.
These issues were deliberated in a panel discussion hosted by China contract manufacturer Sirio Pharma during its 30th anniversary celebration recently held in Shanghai.
Information gap on nutritional needs remains significant among Chinese consumers – Blackmores
The market value of China’s health foods industry increased from 250.3bn Chinese yuan (USD35bn) in February 2020 to 328.3bn Chinese yuan (USD45.8bn) in February 2023.
Despite these figures and “many claims” that health awareness among Chinese consumers has grown post-pandemic, Kitty Liu, Managing Director of Blackmores Group (China), believes that there is still a significant information gap to bridge.
“Consumers do not fully understand the different nutritional needs, such as types of protein, vitamins and minerals, at various stages of life, and thus do not address these needs sufficiently,” she said.
