Rural / Country

Fonterra has lofty plans for trade in China

13:54 pm on 11 April 2014

Fonterra says it has lofty growth plans to help New Zealand reach its 2020 trade target with China.

China is New Zealand biggest trading partner and the Government has the goal of increasing two-way trade to 30 billion in the next six years.

Greater China and India president Kelvin Wickham said the company has moved on from last year's botulism scare and is looking to make a sharp increase in sales in China.

He said Fonterra is investing in more farms there to increase milk supply to one-billion-litres a year.

"We've just started building another four (farms) now and a fifth one so we should have another five by the end of 2015.

''And then after that we'll look to try and roll out about approximately another five farms per calendar year - every 12 to 18 months. That'll reach us about 30 farms by 2020, 2021."

Mr Wickham said Fonterra has also started selling its own infant formula brand, Anmum, in China.

It is now available in more than 100 stores and one of the country's top e-retailers, T-Mall.

more about the high hopes for trade in China can be heard on Insight on Sunday.