• U.S. dairy protein activities in Southeast Asia

• USDEC strengthens ties with FAS

• USDEC engages in agricultural plastics policy with FAO

• Sustainability knowledge-sharing with Dairy Australia

• Ag coalition sends COP28 letter to Vilsack, Blinken

• Reminder: Next board meeting in spring 2024

• Member opportunity to present at ingredient events in China

• Market Summary: EU farmgate milk prices continue to fall

• CPTPP dispute panel hits Canada on dairy TRQ system

• Arla collaboration leads to Indonesia’s first domestic organic cheese

• Mengniu says RTD protein beverages to drive Chinese dairy demand

• Company news briefs: Solar Foods, Nestlé, Dairy Nutraceuticals

 

Southeast Asian key opinion leaders, food and beverage processors learn why protein quality matters
USDEC’s Southeast Asia office conducted four back-to-back activities in Singapore last week highlighting why protein quality matters and why U.S. dairy proteins are the ideal choice when it comes to nutrition, functionality and innovation. Three of the four events took place at the U.S. Center for Dairy Excellence (U.S. CDE) in Singapore, reinforcing its stature as a prominent dairy learning destination, ideation hub and collaboration space.

The events came at a time of rising competition from plant proteins alongside misinformation and pseudoscience spreading online.

“It is critical in today’s landscape to educate and advocate for what truly constitutes healthy eating to help everyday consumers make the right decisions,” said Dali Ghazalay, regional director, USDEC Southeast Asia.

The activities earned some buy-in.

Kristi Saitama, USDEC vice president, Global Ingredients Marketing, noted: “It was rewarding and a sign of the success of all four activities that participants kept repeating back that proteins are not all created equal, and recognizing how dairy proteins stand out distinctively from other protein sources in terms of protein quality.”

Creating U.S. dairy protein ambassadors
Twenty key opinion leaders (KOLs) from across Southeast Asia gathered at the U.S. CDE on Sept. 5 for the half-day workshop, “Optimizing Healthy, Sustainable Eating with U.S. Dairy Proteins.” The event brought together thought leaders—university professors, nutritionists and fitness experts—for an intimate and interactive discussion on the importance of protein quality, quantity and distribution and how these factors play an essential role in enabling optimal protein nutritional benefits that fuel the varying life stages and active lifestyles. The workshop also reinforced that plant-forward diets do not mean that animal foods must be completely avoided but rather can play a complementary role in optimizing nutrition.

The aim was to create ambassadors who can communicate confidently the importance of protein quality and the science-backed advantages of U.S. dairy proteins in meeting daily nutritional requirements. Plus, the workshop has the added benefit of strengthening U.S. dairy’s reputation as a dairy expert and committed supplier.

The session was led by registered dietitians Leslie Bonci, owner of nutrition consulting company Active Eating Advice, and Pauline Chan, vice president of the Singapore Nutrition and Dietetic Association and director of nutrition consultancy Food & Nutrition Specialists. Bonci, who participated in all four events last week, and Chan laid out why proteins are not all the same in terms of nutritional quality, how to optimize consumption throughout the day and how to fill protein gaps, such as at breakfast and snack occasions using U.S. dairy proteins.

Left to right: Pauline Chan and Leslie Bonci demonstrate how U.S. dairy proteins can be easily incorporated into everyday meal planning in the U.S. CDE demo kitchen.

The branched chain amino acid leucine is essential to kickstart muscle protein synthesis. Bonci illustrated one of whey protein’s advantages by showing how much protein powder would be needed from an array of alternative proteins to match the leucine content of just one scoop of whey protein.

“The workshop—which had a waiting list to attend—was extremely well received and accomplished the intended goals of strengthening the KOL community’s ability to act as knowledgeable ambassadors about U.S. dairy protein health and nutritional advantages,” said Saitama. “Many participants relayed how they would use this information in their own nutrition education and communications efforts and several asked when we would hold the next workshop, because they wanted to attend again or send their colleagues.”

Protein throughout life
On Sept. 6, USDEC held its first large-scale seminar in Singapore since the Milk Powder Summit in 2019. More than 120 representatives from food and beverage companies, nutritionists, academia and others gathered at the ParkRoyal Hotel for a full day of presentations around the theme, “Fit for Life: Exploring U.S. Dairy Nutrition and Innovation Advantages Throughout Life’s Journey.”

The event emphasized the ample room to innovate with U.S. dairy protein in health and wellness products. It featured a mix of presentations from outside experts and USDEC staff. Highlights included:

• Dali Ghazalay explained why the U.S. is the ideal supply source for dairy ingredients to meet Southeast Asian needs and reinforced U.S. dairy’s sustainability progress and commitments.
  
  
• Japnit Singh, COO of Spire Research and Consulting, shared findings on consumer perceptions of health and wellness, including that healthy aging, strong immunity and managing lifestyle diseases were the top three priorities for Southeast Asians.
  
  
• Martin Teo, USDEC Southeast Asia’s technical director, food applications, compared the functional/sensory performance of dairy and plant proteins based on research conducted with Singapore’s Food Innovation and Resource Centre and highlighted Southeast Asia-friendly innovation possibilities with U.S. dairy proteins.
  
  
• Leslie Bonci provided an overview of the science backing dairy protein’s health and nutritional advantages and why protein quality matters throughout life.
  
  
• Anoo Pothen, USDEC Southeast Asia’s consumer insights director, highlighted findings from USDEC consumer research on Southeast Asian consumer perceptions and priorities when it comes to sustainability.
  
  
• Prasenjit Bhattacharya, head of brand strategy and innovation for Kantar Singapore, highlighted four food and beverage trends poised to influence the industry: the enduring appeal of protein, pursuit of gut health, mind-boosting nutrition and the debate over sugar. Bhattacharya also emphasized that “health” these days is not just physical but spans emotional and mental well-being.
  
  
• Kristi Saitama shared examples of commercial health and wellness-positioned dairy protein foods and beverages from the U.S, Japan and Korea to inspire innovation.

Japnit Singh highlights consumer perspectives on health and wellness in his presentation, “What’s on Consumers’ Minds for Healthy Eating and Proteins?”

Left to right: Kristi Saitama moderated a panel discussion on dairy protein benefits and uses with Martin Teo, Leslie Bonci and Prasenjit Bhattacharya.

Hands-on-innovation
On Sept. 7 and 8, USDEC held two hands-on, “Sip to Success” innovation workshops on protein beverages. The Sept. 7 event focused on ready-to-drink (RTD) beverages and Sept. 8 concentrated on ready-to-mix (RTM) products.

Presentations from Leslie Bonci, Melinda Moss, R&D manager of Pivotal Ingredients, and Martin Teo helped outline the nutritional, function and performance considerations when formulating with dairy proteins. Teo also highlighted Southeast Asia-friendly beverage innovation opportunities, showing several USDEC prototype concepts and leading a sampling of prototype and commercial products. Teo and Calista Foo, USDEC Southeast Asia food technologist, also led participants through a tasting demonstration to compare and evaluate the taste and visual quality differences of whey protein versus pea, soy and rice protein. Whey protein had the clear advantage for both visual appearance and taste.

Leslie Bonci (standing) reviews the importance of hydration for health at the ready-to-mix beverage workshop.

Martin Teo and Calista Foo demonstrate the relative foaming ability and foam stability of different dairy ingredients in the U.S. CDE kitchen.

A major highlight of the Sept. 7 workshop was the RTD protein beverage development challenge. Attendees split into four groups and were asked to create an RTD protein beverage targeting a specific target market: teens, healthy aging, weight management/meal replacement and active young adults. Each group presented its product concept to all participants, with Teo and Bonci in charge of judging. The winning group brainstormed a no-sugar-added, vanilla-flavored milk drink called Golden SoSure. The product was made with MPC80 and WPI, offering 15g of protein per serving, and also contained probiotics, calcium and potassium.

Six USDEC member companies also presented at the RTM workshop.

Pia Clementina R. Calip, head of beverages and packaging at Philippine food and beverage processor Universal Robina Corp., called the workshop, “Very useful … Being a leader for our product development in the Philippines, it gave me a lot of insights not just for product formats but also product concepts—and even for communications. It’s going to give me a lot of things to bring back home.”

Saitama concluded: “From the KOL training on Sept. 5 through the RTM workshop on Sept. 8, the enthusiasm from participants and the reactions we received reinforced a bright future for U.S. dairy proteins in Southeast Asia, that there are no boundaries on innovating healthy foods and beverages and meals using U.S. dairy proteins as the ingredient of choice for health and functional benefits—and these products can seamlessly fit within a Southeast Asian context.”

The winning group from USDEC’s RTD beverage challenge with their prototype Golden SoSure protein-fortified drink targeting the 55+ segment.

USDEC leaders meet with Daniel Whitley to deepen USDEC-FAS partnership
A USDEC delegation met this week with FAS Administrator Daniel Whitley as part of USDEC’s ongoing efforts to enhance USDEC’s funding and partnership with the agency. USDEC President and CEO Krysta Harden, Interim Chair Alex Peterson, COO Martha Scott Poindexter, Executive Vice President, Policy Development and Strategy Jaime Castaneda, and Senior Vice President, Trade Policy Shawna Morris visited Whitley at his office to discuss how to partner further with FAS to deepen its support of dairy exports in ways that complement USDEC's work.

FAS and its attachés have long been key USDEC partners in the effort to build U.S. dairy export markets. USDEC has engaged in a series of activities with FAS officials this year, including training attachés prior to their entry to the field (see Global Dairy eBrief, 3/17/23 and 8/25/23) and organizing a tour of a dairy farm and manufacturing plant at the request of the agency (see Global Dairy eBrief, 6/2/23).

Left to right: USDEC President and CEO Krysta Harden, FAS Administrator Daniel Whitley and USDEC Interim Chair Alex Peterson.

USDEC continues engagement with FAO on plastics use at regional consultation
Nick Gardner, senior vice president, Sustainability and Multilateral Affairs (SAMA) and Kelly Sheridan, vice president, Environmental Affairs, represented USDEC last week at a UN Food and Agriculture Organization-hosted regional consultation supporting the development of the organization’s voluntary code of conduct on agricultural plastics. The consultation, which brought together stakeholders from across North America, was a unique opportunity for USDEC to advocate for practical and feasible approaches to managing plastics used in U.S. dairy production.

USDEC’s input aimed to ensure that any recommendations considered tradeoffs, reflected the diversity in livestock production systems around the world and didn’t compromise safety or sacrifice productivity.

The pair also advocated for limiting the scope of guidelines developed by FAO to the use and recovery of plastics in agriculture. With so many local, state, regional and international efforts focused on other parts of the plastics lifecycle, this effort represents a unique opportunity to get things right for farmers around the world rather than diluting focus and jeopardizing impact.

A seat at the table
Gardner and Sheridan were invited by FAO to participate in the consultation, a sign of USDEC’s growing recognition by international organizations as a credible authority in areas of sustainability policy. The regional consultation follows Gardner’s participation in a Global Expert Meeting FAO organized in June (see Global Dairy eBrief, 6/30/23).

“I was pleased to see that many of the discussion questions FAO posed in this recent regional consultation reflected input provided by USDEC and like-minded organizations during the earlier consultation,” said Gardner. “It suggests FAO is serious about considering the input it is receiving through its consultation processes and publishing a workable, realistic voluntary code of conduct.”

USDEC will continue to engage in several ongoing global efforts to reduce plastic pollution and manage agricultural plastic waste. This mirrors the commitment of U.S. dairy farmers who are taking action to collect and recycle the plastic used on their farms and USDEC members who are enhancing the recyclability of their packaging and opting to use more recycled materials in their supply chains when possible.

USDEC shares sustainability work with Dairy Australia
Nick Gardner, senior vice president, Sustainability and Multilateral Affairs (SAMA), worked with Eric Hassel, director, Sustainability Measurement and Reporting, Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, to organize a virtual presentation to Dairy Australia on U.S. dairy processor sustainability efforts. Hassel gave the presentation this past Tuesday, with Gardner providing additional comments highlighting the need for collaboration and strong partnerships to improve the environmental footprint of dairy production.

The opportunity to present to Dairy Australia arose directly from a USDEC visit with the group earlier in the year (see Global Dairy eBrief, 5/5/23). It was another example of USDEC’s expanding efforts to build partnerships with allied dairy groups around the world—in Europe, Asia, Latin America and Oceania—to find common ground, build goodwill, strengthen the channels for two-way exchange of information and foster collaboration on dairy priorities. Those priorities include advancing science-based standards, common approaches to sustainability, and dairy-positive nutritional guidance.

Around 50 representatives of Dairy Australia and other members of Australia-based dairy processing organizations tuned into the presentation.

Ag animal coalition lays out COP28 priorities to USDA, State Department
USDEC joined a coalition of livestock and related groups this week in a letter to Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack urging proactive U.S. leadership and coalition building to support sustainable livestock production ahead of and during COP28. This year’s UN Climate Change Conference, or COP, takes place Nov. 30-Dec. 12 in Dubai.

COP28 again promises to grab global media attention, influence national policy, impact commerce and inform thought leaders on all things climate. With many anti-animal activists gearing up to use the event to advance their ideological interests, it is critical for USDEC to be part of the convening to demonstrate U.S. dairy’s robust environmental commitments and for the U.S. government to show its leadership in developing climate solutions that advance sustainable animal agriculture.

“COP28 represents a key opportunity for the United States to prominently feature sustainable livestock alongside other food systems solutions that can sustainably nourish global consumers by producing nutrient-dense food while protecting natural resources,” the letter states.

The coalition lays out five outcomes on which the U.S. should lead at COP28:

• Recognize that, as directly noted in a recent landmark FAO report, nutrient-dense animal-source foods offer crucial sources of much-needed nutrients that cannot easily be replaced by other sources and that U.S. farmers, ranchers, agribusinesses, and food manufacturers are driving climate, circularity, and food security solutions to sustain production of these foods for generations to come.
  
  
• Champion the benefits of modern U.S. agriculture, rules-based international trade and the contributions of U.S. exports to nourishing the world and supporting resilient food systems.
  
  
• Recognize that all production systems and food types should seek to optimize environmental impact without sacrificing nutrient-density, overall diet quality and diversity, or economic and social sustainability.
  
  
• Avoid overly prescriptive or “one-size-fits-all” approaches that mandate specific processes rather than allowing for diverse systems that achieve comparable outcomes.
  
  
• Oppose efforts to remove animal-sourced foods from nutrition assistance and institutional feeding programs as these foods provide key nutrients to meet nutritional requirements for children, elderly, and vulnerable populations.

The letter requests to meet Secretaries Blinken and Vilsack or their agency leads to further discuss engagement and strengthen global security and sustainability outcomes in advance of and at COP28.

This week’s letter represents one of the many ongoing USDEC activities to prepare for COP28. USDEC will again lead the U.S. dairy delegation to COP, which will, for the first time, include U.S. dairy farmer leaders Alex Peterson and Marilyn Hershey. Through an enterprise-wide media effort and a coordinated, farmer-focused strategy on the ground, USDEC is well poised to make a significant impact at COP28 and capitalize on global attention to climate to promote the essential role of U.S. dairy and trade in delivering sustainable food systems.

Reminder: Next USDEC membership meeting in spring 2024
As noted in March at the Spring Membership Meeting in Washington, D.C., USDEC is switching to a once-a-year schedule for membership meetings. There will be no fall meeting this year or in the future.

The next USDEC membership meeting will take place April 15-16, 2024, at the Omni Houston Hotel in Houston, Texas.

The organization made the change to a once-a-year schedule to relieve some of the travel burdens on USDEC members, increase the quality of the content and insights at the meetings, and ensure prime speakers. In addition to this change, we will continue to engage with our members at other USDEC committee meetings, seminars and trainings. If you have any questions, please contact Luke Waring at lwaring@usdec.org.

USDEC invites members to participate in Chinese dairy ingredient seminar on Oct. 25; permeate bakery workshop on Nov. 17
USDEC invites members to attend and present at two upcoming U.S. dairy ingredient seminars in China. If you are interested in participating in either event or have questions, please contact Annie Bienvenue at abienvenue@usdec.org.

Health and wellness at CIFST
USDEC will host a half-day seminar during the upcoming Chinese Institute of Food Science and Technology’s (CIFST’s) 20th Annual Meeting in Changsha, Hunan Province. The two-day CIFST meeting takes place Oct. 24-25, with the half-day USDEC workshop, “The Power of Dairy for a Healthier and Better Life,” slated for the morning of Oct. 25.

The event is a continuation of USDEC’s long-standing collaboration with CIFST, an influential and well-respected organization in China’s food industry. As a part of CIFST’s meeting, the seminar seeks to inspire conversations on how using U.S. dairy ingredients cater to consumer’s desire for healthy products, while promoting further product development and usage to support mutually beneficial growth opportunities.

Anchored around the release of CIFST’s “Consensus on Dairy and Adult Health & Nutrition,” the event will also provide insights into market research on consumer perceptions toward proteins and demonstrate healthy applications and innovation ideas made possible by using U.S. dairy protein and permeate ingredients. The workshop will also present global new product launches and food and beverage examples tailored to Chinese diets that were developed in tandem with USDEC’s partners and through student competitions at Jiangnan University (JU). The event targets the broad membership of CIFST.

Bakery workshop with CABCI and JU
USDEC is collaborating with the China Association of Bakery and Confectionary Industry (CABCI) and Jiangnan University to hold a half-day bakery seminar Nov. 17 in Shanghai. The workshop will focus on demonstrating the uses and benefits of dairy permeates in bakery applications and include presentations of the opportunities and benefits that milk and whey permeate provide in bakery applications, from cost savings to improving the outcome of the final product.

It is primarily designed to help expedite the use of permeate but also other U.S. dairy ingredients in the general bakery sector, including in fresh retail-packed products and ready-to-use blends.

The event will feature presentations, live demonstrations and tastings from a lineup of expert speakers, including Chef Dong Han, Liaoning Vocational Technical College of Modern Service; Chef Yuwei Lin, experienced and renowned Taiwanese baker and owner of three Daico Bakery outlets in Beijing; Dr. Gary Hou, R&D director with South Korean food manufacturer SPC Group and a long-time consultant to USDEC; Lina Zhang, associate professor at Jiangnan University; and leaders of CABCI and USDEC staff.

 

EU farmgate milk prices continue to decline
The average EU27 farmgate milk price fell 1.3% in July compared to June. It was the seventh consecutive month-over-month decline after the price hit a record in December 2022. The July average price is 14.4% down on July 2023.

It’s too early for an accurate estimate of July EU27 milk deliveries (the top producers have yet to report figures), but June posted the smallest gain of the year, and weekly figures suggest milk production in Germany—the largest producer in Europe and one of the few countries powering the growth—has stalled.

On the positive side for the bloc’s farmers, 1.3% was the smallest decline of the year, and early projections estimate the August price might fall only 0.4%. In addition, feed prices fell 3%, the seventh decline in the last eight months.

With milk prices down, fragile demand in the EU and slow demand growth globally, USDEC still expects EU27 milk production to weaken in the back half of the year.

 

New Zealand wins dairy trade dispute with Canada
New Zealand won a trade challenge with Canada under the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). New Zealand charged that Canada was misusing its tariff rate quota (TRQ) system to block dairy access it had promised under the CPTPP agreement.

An independent panel agreed that Canada’s dairy TRQ administration is inconsistent with its obligations under the CPTPP. The panel said that Canada was granting priority TRQ access to its own domestic dairy processors (who were unlikely to utilize them) while locking out actual potential buyers of New Zealand dairy products, including local retailers and importers.

How Canada will respond to the ruling is unknown. Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand urged the Canadian government to “do the right thing” and change the system to one that is “fair and above board as soon as possible.” (New Zealand government; Radio New Zealand, 9/6/23)

 

Indonesia introduces first locally produced organic cheese
An international dairy development collaboration created to further the development of organic dairy production in Indonesia recently introduced that country’s first locally produced organic cheese. The launch is the result of a partnership between Denmark-based dairy cooperative Arla Foods and partners including Indonesia-based dairy producer Mazaraat Artisan Cheese, the Indonesian government and the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The effort began with Indonesian farmers and other stakeholders making research trips to Denmark in 2018, where Arla shared its agricultural experience and best practices for organic dairy production. The organizations formed a partnership that went on to convert a number of conventional Indonesian farms to certified organic dairy producers. Milk produced at those farms was processed by Mazaraat to become the country’s first organic cheese.

The partnership was formed to meet Indonesia’s growing dairy demand. Roughly 80% of the country’s dairy consumption comes from imported products, and demand is expected to increase by 6% in 2023. The Indonesian government is also working to increase local organic food production from 2% to 20% by 2024. The cheese will be sold locally in hotels, cafés, and restaurants, and Mazaraat says it has inked its first export agreement with Singapore. (Company reports, 8/31/23)

Mengniu says RTD protein beverages will drive dairy in China
Mengniu Dairy, China’s second-largest dairy company, said it believes increasing consumer demand will make innovation in protein products, especially in the ready-to-drink (RTD) beverage format, a key component to the country’s domestic dairy growth.

At the Food and Beverage Innovation Forum in Shenzhen, China, Mengniu Nutrition and Health GM Ben Wu said the company believes RTD protein products will drive the dairy category as Chinese consumers seek the health and nutritional benefits of dairy across all life stages. Other factors Wu identified as contributing to the increased demand for protein products include the aging of Chinese society and a rise in the number of professional Chinese athletes.

Wu also said opportunity areas exist around protein products with Chinese cultural significance and those with flavors catering to Chinese tastes. Mengniu recently launched its first range of locally produced RTD beverage line called M-Action, which features products targeted to men and women based on their genetic differences and activity levels. (DairyReporter.com, 9/6/23)

Solar Foods receives funding to create animal-free milk protein
Solar Foods, a Finland-based food technology company, received funding worth €5.5 million (about US$5.9 million) from the European Innovation Council to work on a four-year project to develop an animal-free milk protein. The “Hydrocow project” will use genetic engineering to produce milk protein from carbon dioxide and electricity. Solar Foods and a consortium of European academic partners plan to build a protein production platform that will produce beta-lactoglobulin, the major whey protein in cow’s milk, and eventually convert carbon dioxide into ingredients including lactoferrin, casein, enzymes and other proteins. (Food Ingredients First, 9/6/23)

Mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures
The receivers for New Zealand-based processor Dairy Nutraceuticals reportedly signed a deal to sell the company’s fixed assets, despite findings that its accounts “appear inaccurate.” They did not identify the buyer. Bank of China appointed receivers in July after Dairy Nutraceuticals breached its lending agreement. … U.S. cheese manufacturer Heartisan Foods acquired gourmet cheese spread maker North Country Packaging. Heartisan was formed by private equity firm Ronin Equity Partner in 20221 after Ronin acquired and merged the operations of Red Apple Cheese, Barron County Cheese and e-commerce business Cheese Brothers. … Nestlé acquired a majority stake in Brazilian premium chocolate firm Grupo CRM. Grupo CRM operates more than 1,000 chocolate boutiques under the Kopenhagen and Brasil Cacau brands and has a growing online presence. (Company reports; FoodBev.com, 9/12/23; BusinessDesk, 9/5/23)

Company news briefs
Chinese dairy processor Royal Group began construction on a $411-million buffalo milk processing plant in Anhui Province. … PT PepsiCo Indonesia Foods and Beverages broke ground on its first snack food manufacturing facility in Indonesia. The project marks PepsiCo’s return to the country after selling its stake in a 30-year snack-manufacturing joint venture two years ago. … Australian infant formula maker Bubs Australia named Reg Weine as its new CEO, replacing interim CEO Richard Paine. Paine took over for founder and CEO Kristy Carr who was ousted in May for reportedly failing to comply with “reasonable board directions.” (USDEC China office; USDEC Southeast Asia office; FoodBev.com, 9/1/23; Reuters 8/29/23)

 

• Farmers treat water as a precious resource 
• U.S. dairy protein functionality demonstrated at USDEC's beverage innovation workshop in Singapore  
• 20 SE Asian health and fitness experts joined USDEC’s nutrition workshop  
• On Labor Day, USDEC thanks those who keep nutritious dairy products in front of consumers around the world
• USDEC members learn more about SE Asian consumers’ perceptions of sustainability