When buying milk powder from the supermarket, it's important to pay attention to the origin of the milk powder. If it's New Zealand milk powder, you can put it into your shopping cart with confidence.
New Zealand is the world's prime source of milk and dairy products.
Here's five (not-so-secret) secrets about the New Zealand dairy industry and in particular, New Zealand milk powder.
1. New Zealand milk powder is mainly used for export
New Zealand is the largest exporter of dairy products in the world and milk powder is the largest export commodity making up 14 percent of the total value of exports. In the year ending April 2024, New Zealand milk powder exports were valued at $9.7 billion. This figure has increased steadily over the years. Since 2008, annual milk powder export values have increased by over 109%.
Most of these milk powders were sold to China, Australia, Japan, the United States and Malaysia. China was the largest importer of New Zealand milk powder; receiving 30 percent of this past year's total milk powder exports.
2. New Zealand milk powder is the main source of infant milk powder in the world
A considerable percentage of the world's milk powder used in baby formula originates from New Zealand, particularly for markets in China and Southeast Asia.
The food given to infants and toddlers must be the best and safest, which in itself is a recognition of New Zealand milk powder. The main aspects that determine the merit of milk source include the breeding environment, cattle breed, production process and regulation, all of which, New Zealand is the best.
3. The treatment of New Zealand cows is enviable
New Zealand is known as the world's last piece of clean land, with dense national parks, both abundant water and grass, and an unpolluted atmosphere. There are approximately 10,000 farms throughout New Zealand, each covering an average of approximately 155 hectares. Fonterra is the largest and most famous of them all. New Zealand's pastoralists are adept at pasture management, and they do this while keeping their cattle in control of water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
The cows graze freely on the wide pastures, nibbling on the grass. These lucky cows are completely natural grass-fed, do not eat any artificial feed, and are free from mad cow disease and foot-and-mouth disease, a life in paradise produces legendary milk.
4. The breeds of dairy cows are extraordinary
The quality of milk varies depending on the breed of cows. The vast majority of New Zealand's dairy farms are crossbreeds of Holstein-Welshia and Jersey cows, which produce the best milk in the world in terms of quality and quantity.
In 2021/22, there were approximately 4.84 million cows on diary farms across New Zealand, with the largest numbers in Little Bhokato on New Zealand's North Island and North Canterbury on New Zealand's South Island.
5. Multiple regulations keep New Zealand dairy farmers on their toes
New Zealand's dairy regulatory system is one of the best in the world. It is based on the ANZ Food Standards Code and uses the RMP risk management system, which is not only regulated by the New Zealand Food Safety Authority, but also has a more impartial and effective third-party testing and monitoring system. The risk assessment therein starts with the site selection of the cattle farm and includes the health status of the cows, feeding management, use of veterinary drugs and feed, feeding environment, quality of drinking water for the cows, cooling of the milk and nutritional content.
In New Zealand, fresh milk collected for dairy products requires colonies to be less than 30,000 units per milliliter, well above the EU standard of 100,000 units per milliliter. This testing is done daily and if the requirements are not met, the dairy farm is penalized with a penalty equivalent to the price of 30 tons of fresh milk.
A secret that is not a secret
The dairy products produced in New Zealand are some of the most distinctive New Zealand delicacies. At Lowrey Foods, we pride ourselves on using local dairy ingredients in our famous butter cookies, shortbreads, nougat, and ice cream powder. New Zealand milk powder, among the other dairy products produced here like butter, cheese and yoghurt, offer a world-class experience in taste and quality. So it's no longer a secret that what makes our baked treats stand out and taste exceptional traces back to the high quality ingredients we use.
