Park Jin-hai primarily focuses on K-dramas, entertainment shows and actor interviews. Beyond that, she also pens articles covering the broader arts scene, with a particular emphasis on classical music, dance and various aspects of lifestyle. Since joining The Korea Times in 2013, she has made significant contributions in the realms of hallyu (Korean wave), industry news and international affairs.
Maeil Dairies enters joint venture with Chinese formula maker
Maeil Dairies Vice President Kim Seon-hee, right, with Beingmate President Huang Tao after signing a joint-venture agreement at Beingmate’s headquarters in Hangzhou, China, Wednesday.
By Park Jin-hai
By Park Jin-hai
Maeil Dairies has joined with Hangzhou-based Beingmate, a leading Chinese baby formula maker, to break into the rapidly growing Chinese market.
Maeil said the two companies had signed a joint-venture agreement that will focus on the production of a special infant formula for premature or low-weight babies, lactose-intolerant infants and those with amino acid metabolism disorders.
The venture also will do research and development, as well as make pre-packaged food and food supplements. “It will give us a chance to show off Korea’s technology and formula quality to Chinese consumers,” said an official at Maeil Dairies. “By carrying out joint research, we hope to contribute to enhancing the health of Chinese infants, and establish the joint brand as a leading formula maker in China.”
The venture, the Hangzhou Beingmate Maeil Food Company, will be launched early next year after being licensed by the Chinese government. Maeil will initially invest some 400 million won ($350,000) for a 40 percent stake, and Beingmate will put up some 600 million won ($527,000) for the remaining 60 percent.
The joint brand will launch its first product in late December, and follow with six types of special formula and eight of types of formula for infants with amino acid metabolism disorders owned by Maeil. The first products were unveiled at a baby fair in Hangzhou, China, Friday.
Beingmate, established in 1992 and headquartered in the Hangzhou Hi-tech Development Zone, is third in market share in the China, after Mead Johnson and Wyeth, and first as a local player in China. It is said it has entered the joint venture with Korea’s top special formula manufacturer to gain a competitive advantage over rivals in the Chinese infant formula market, where competition is intensifying.
Last year, China’s infant formula market was worth 21.6 trillion won and its special formula market 288 billion won. The special formula market has been growing at up to 30 percent a year.
The proportion of premature babies in China has risen from 2 percent of births in 2012 to 8 percent this year, and more infants have developed allergies from environmental contamination and weakened immunity.