Recent research, undertaken by Dairy Australia, has found that with the exception of Japan, demand for dairy in key Asian markets is unlikely to be significantly impacted by price increases.

“What we have seen in the past 12 months is the creation of new demand for dairy commodities which we expect will continue over the long term,” said Dairy Australia’s Industry Analyst Norman Repacholi.

“The increase in demand has been fuelled by population growth, increases in personal income and western-style influences on the Asian diet.

“More importantly the markets we surveyed showed a strong preference for Australian dairy products where they are available.

“Our products are held in high regard because of their quality, functionality and the rigorous food safety assurance standards applied to Australian exports. 

“This is good news for Australian dairy farmers and should give the industry increased confidence to move forward with future investment,” he said. 

The survey, the first of its kind undertaken by Dairy Australia, examined the sustainability of demand at current commodity prices in the key Asian export markets of Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Taiwan, China and Korea.

It was designed to provide a deeper understanding of current and future market demand responses, potential dairy substitutes, consumers’ reaction to increased prices and expectations of future demand, particularly against dairy substitutes.

Mr Repacholi said that in the markets studied, dairy was consumed for taste, functional properties and nutritional benefit and that generic messages promoting the health benefits of dairy had had a significant impact in international markets.

“It seems that dairy is generally considered a superior protein source to soy or vegetable based proteins, and in some cases it was also considered a healthier and safer source of protein than meat,” he said.

“As a result, retail price increases of up to 15 per cent have been passed through in most markets with no significant consumer impacts.

“Most of our respondents were confident that demand for dairy was sufficiently robust to withstand increasing dairy prices, with steady economic growth in the region expected to underpin demand and help reduce the impact of ongoing prices rises,” he said.

ENDS

For more information contact Sid Pickering on 03 9694 3894 or 0418 175 611 or This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

Asian demand strong for Australian dairy