Chinese dairy customers boost Avonmore sales

Tirlán, Ireland’s top food and nutrition cooperative, has said Chinese consumers’ thirst for high-quality milk from grass-fed cows is driving up demand for Avonmore dairy products.

On May 22–25, at Bakery China held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai, Tirlán presented the Avonmore Professional Whipping Cream range with varying fat contents.

Brands in the dairy industry are increasingly putting an emphasis on emerging concepts like “health and purity.”

The environment in Ireland is ideal for producing high-quality dairy goods. This results in dairy creams that are lit with golden sunlight, as only cream from grass-fed cows can be.

Consumers who already have a certain level of knowledge have embraced new trends, with a clear preference for higher-quality and purer dairy products. They have a more conscious and inquisitive mind toward the origin of the milk source and the clean label. This is due to the development of the domestic bakery industry and the trend of consumption upgrading.

Ronan Mullin, Deputy Consul General of Ireland in Shanghai, told Shanghai Daily that China was a key market for Irish dairy, meat, and seafood. Therefore, it made sense for Ireland to promote grass-fed dairy products.

Mullin said the Irish Food Board and the Irish Agriculture and Food Development Authority have recognized Ireland’s grass-fed milk. The country also excels in producing dairy products using natural production methods.

He said that numerous initiatives have been taken to promote knowledge transfer and economic interaction in order to foster a shared understanding of Irish food production systems and the sharing of best practices for enhancing sustainability.

Irish dairy products are renowned across the world for their superior quality, high safety requirements, and cutting-edge nutritional value.

In addition, Tirlán processes one-third of the country’s milk supply and is the leading buyer of Irish grains.

In September 2022 Tirlán obtained Origin Green Gold Membership status for the third year in a row in recognition of its excellence in sustainability. The awarding of the Origin Green Gold Standard recognizes Tirlán’s efforts to excel in sustainable food production as part of Ireland’s pioneering food and drink sustainability program. To attain Origin Green Gold Membership a company must demonstrate exceptional annual performance in areas such as raw material sourcing; water and energy efficiency; waste reduction; packaging; and social sustainability.

Jim O’Neill, Tirlán’s Chief Operating & Consumer Officer, said the company enjoyed the largest sales volume in China last year.

“I visited Bakery China, and I’m truly excited to see the level of interaction between exhibitors and visitors. It was truly extraordinary,” he said.

“We’re in a unique position, and we’re Ireland’s number one dairy processor with the largest volume of milk, and in China, our important task is listening and engaging with customers,” he said.

“We’re eager to listen to all of our customers here in China and to understand exactly what it is they need.”

“We’re focused on our existing cream products at the moment. We recently invested 15 million euros to create a new research and development facility in Ireland with more than 50 technicians and scientists,” he said.

Additionally, Tirlán has set a goal to support its dairy farmers in delivering a 30 percent reduction in carbon intensity from milk production. To do this, Tirlán believes it is essential to work with farmers and offer sustainability initiatives that will help boost biodiversity and protect both soil and water quality.

Shanghai Apple Foods Tech (Group) Co Ltd’s General Manager, Bob Wang, said that the company is committed to introducing premium Irish grass-fed dairy products.

“Ireland is known as the Emerald Isle of Avonmore in China,” he said. “We insist on pure natural grass-fed with a clean label and are willing to introduce such raw materials in China to ensure Chinese consumers and the Chinese baking and catering industry enjoy more healthy natural ingredients.”

Wang said that as the exclusive distributor for Avonmore professional cream in China food service channel, it has made a commitment to provide customers with a variety of solutions, the best raw materials, and the best applications for the bakery and catering industries.