China’s Largest Beverage Company Strengthens Relations to Chr. Hansen

19 Apr 2013 --- As China is galloping forward as a new economic superpower with high growth rates and an enormous, steadily growing base of well-off consumers, Chr. Hansen had the pleasure of welcoming Mr Zong, founder and CEO of the Wahaha Group, China’s largest beverage company and a major player in the food industry.

The purpose of the visit to headquarters in Denmark, which included extensive tasting sessions, a tour of R&D facilities and the world’s largest plant for producing bacterial cultures, was to strengthen the relations that already exist between Wahaha and Chr. Hansen with a view to identifying future innovation projects.

Mr Zong revealed that he is looking to expand Wahaha’s portfolio with nutritious and healthy products, which are increasingly demanded by Chinese consumers.

“Right now a major trend in China is the wish to have nutritious and healthy products. Fresh, chilled dairy products (as opposed to UHT products) are definitely of interest to us, as are solutions Chr. Hansen can offer in juice, be that natural colors or probiotic cultures. We are also looking for opportunities to make production more efficient and believe Chr. Hansen has something to offer,” said Mr Zong, who added that he was pleased with the visit and impressed by Chr. Hansen’s capabilities.

“We want to contribute positively to the development of China and our customers. Our vision of improving food and health fits very well with the market trends in China as well as the key objectives of China and its five year plan to improve food safety and health,” says Christian Kühl, Regional Vice President, Asia, Pacific & Middle East.

“China is a dynamic market and Chinese customers require value adding services beside high quality products. Chr. Hansen has had a strong local presence in China for more than ten years and we understand the unique characteristics of the Chinese market and customers. We establish close partnerships with our customers and we help them develop new and innovative products. Our product and service offering is always tailor made to the specific needs of our customers.”

Chr. Hansen is a major culture supplier in the Chinese dairy market and a leading player within natural colors. As more and more consumers demand a clean label, Chinese food manufacturers are seeking support to remove artificial ingredients. Chr. Hansen’s range of e-number free natural colors from fruits and berries, FruitMax is an excellent solution that is gaining popularity in the market.