Although the "milk powder national team" argument was denied by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the list of support for "merger and reorganization of milk powder companies" is almost complete. A few days ago, it was learned from sources that the list of the first companies that will receive state support has been released. Yili, Mengniu, Feihe, Wandashan and the Highlands treasure are expected to be short-listed.

The China Business News reporter was also informed that according to the "Plan for M&A and Restructuring Enterprise Formulation for Infant and Infant Formula Milk Powder Industry" that has been compiled by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the above five companies are expected to receive special funds from the central government, policy loans from the China Development Bank, and provincial finance packages. Funds, mergers and acquisitions companies implement tax incentives and other support policies. The industry estimates that the amount of support funds for the entire industry will exceed RMB 30 billion.

A number of companies said that in the near future, the China Dairy Products Industry Association will hold a press conference to promote the products of the five companies. By then, people from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will participate and announce certain rules and announce the first list of companies to support. The new high-end milk powder brands launched by these companies will also be officially launched. "These five companies will become the first echelon of domestic milk powder," the source said.

Supporting list released

On September 18, Chen Lin (a pseudonym), a staff member of a domestic dairy product company, disclosed to the China Business News that in the merger and reorganization of the dairy industry, the list of companies supported by the government has been basically established, with Yili, Mengniu, Feihe, Wandashan, The treasure of the plateau became the first enterprise to receive state support, but it is not ruled out that there may be changes in the final announcement.

The reporter called each of the insiders of several companies for verification, and the other party did not deny it. There were also direct responses from the company to "really true." In the interview with the media, Gao Fu, deputy inspector of the Consumer Products Division of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, only denied the media’s report on the “national team” of milk powder. “This is a wrong report. There is no concept of milk powder 'national team'. Who should be' The national team's shouldn't be the 'national team' and it's not the right one!"

Earlier, Zhu Hongren, spokesman of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, once stated that the strength and direction of mergers and reorganizations is to form a batch of production enterprises with brand quality that can assure the public. The target is to form 3 to 5 large-scale infant formula milk powder companies with sales revenue of more than RMB 5 billion by the end of 2018, so that the industry concentration of the top 10 mainland brand enterprises will exceed 80%.

The reporter had previously reported that according to the "Plan for the Promotion of Merger and Reorganization of Infant Formula Milk Powder Industry Enterprises" prepared by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, it was proposed that the large-scale milk powder enterprises with the top industries in the industry should implement the merger and reorganization supporting measures for the industry, such as the central government's financial contribution. Establish supportive policies such as the establishment of relevant funds, the National Development Bank to provide policy loans, provincial financial arrangements matching funds, and taxation incentives for the implementation of mergers and acquisitions. According to industry estimates, all types of support funds for mergers and reorganizations of milk powder companies will exceed RMB 30 billion.

For this reason, each milk powder company has shown the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, hoping to become the object of support. The relevant staff of each company also constantly learns the decisions of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology through various channels and the recent actions of competitors.

“This list is mostly expected. In addition to Feihe Dairy, the other four companies are all state-owned enterprises. They are all ranked higher in the industry and have bigger and stronger operations, management, and corporate strength. In addition, the brand reputation of Highlands is not very high. In fact, this is a Tibetan company. The production of Tan Lai is a key supporter of the local community?” An insider who declined to be named said: “But the biggest milk powder brands in the country, Bainmei and Shengyuan, are not on the list. It's a pity.”

According to the statistics of international market research company Eurocore, Yili’s market share of domestic infant formula milk powder is 7.8%, which is the largest domestically produced milk powder producer, in terms of retail sales in 2012; Mengniu and its affiliated Yashili share 0.2% respectively. % and 4.7%, Feihe, Wandashan were 1.7%, "Plateau of the treasure" was not included in the statistics.

“Beinmei is the largest milk powder company in the country, but it does not seem to be active in responding to national policies. Even the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology does not include Beinmei’s name on the domestic milk powder production and sales statistics list, and there are also many rumors about Beinmei’s sale. The government should also worry that after the support, Beinmei will suddenly sell it," Chen Lin said in an analysis. “In addition, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology requires that companies that may be supported need to be profitable for three consecutive years, corporate banks must have a credit rating above AA, have their own brands, use wet process, and use 85% of raw materials for stable and controllable milk resources. Real Estate Fresh Milk. Several of the selected companies are full-industry-chain enterprises and have their own animal husbandry. 15. How about the research and development capabilities of Tan Tantao?

Song Liang, a dairy analyst at the China Business Productivity Promotion Center, also bluntly stated in an interview: “Bein America and Shengyuan are domestic brands that have great influence and should be supported by the government. They can help other domestic brands to promote, but unfortunately there is no Finalists."

Promote high-end market

Chen Lin also told reporters that on September 28, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will hold a press conference to announce this list. At the same time, high-end milk powder launched by several companies will also be on the market to restore market confidence.

The high voltage also confirms that there are indeed some high-end milk powder brands that are supported and focused on promotion, but this is led by the Dairy Industry Association. Which brands can be selected are also determined by the association. “The government can't define these things, market behavior. The government can't do it."

Regardless of who dominates, it is indeed an indisputable fact that domestic milk powder brands will make high-end products. Looking at the domestic milk powder market, after years of shocks, domestic milk powder was suppressed by foreign milk powder, and they all retreated to the third and fourth line markets. Not only did the brand not compete with foreign milk powder, even the price was monopolized by foreign milk powder, and domestic brands were in the high-end market. The share has continued to shrink. This time the collective promotion of high-end products, can reverse the current market structure, the market can only give the answer.

At present, Yili has golden collars, Yilijin outfits and golden collars to protect three types of infant formula milk powder. The gold collar Guanzhen who sells for more than 300 yuan per can is the high-end route; Mengniu has already passed the European dairy industry. The giant Arla Foods has cooperated to launch the high-end and ultra-high-end milk powders of the “Aushi Mengniu” brand; the flying cranes have three series of milk powder: Feihe, Super-sailing, and Star-flying. In the high-end milk powder over 300 yuan; Wandashan also has a high-end milk brand An Licong, each tank is priced at 300 yuan; plateau treasure of milk powder per tank is more than 400 yuan.

Wu Ningjiang, deputy general manager of Wandashan Dairy, said that the company's main push this year is An Licong, and next year there may be other brands. “Our milking process from milking cows to powdering is as fast as 11 hours. It is fresh and safe. In the clinical trials at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangdong, we did a comparison with foreign brands, Anlicong, and breastmilk. There is no difference with breast milk. Data It is the same, our finalist is reasonable.” Yu Ningjiang said in an interview with the media.

In addition, there are domestic dairy industry practitioners told reporters that the current foreign milk powder is suffering the greatest crisis in history, this is the best time for domestic brands to fight back the market. Lei Yongjun, general manager of the company's planning agency at Putian Road, Beijing, also pointed out that the previous Fonterra “botox” incident has made domestic consumers see the quality of foreign brands, and the anti-monopoly investigation has exposed the price of foreign milk powder. The recent news of seizing the baby’s first baby’s milk has made the channels of hospitals that have not previously been noticed more transparent. These combined efforts will have serious market impact on foreign milk powder.

However, after the launch of high-end products made by domestic brands, although they are supported by policies and can finally stand up in the market, they rely on the company's own ability. Song Liang emphasized that the relevant departments' intervention to promote and regain consumer confidence is good, but companies need to continue their efforts not only to ensure quality, but also to continue to build a brand, because "through the product of domestic brands There is a new understanding, after all, it needs to let the market and consumers choose."

This is similar to what Wang Ziheng, chief project director of the marketing planning agency of Blue Cloud FMCG Brand Marketing in North China, puts it. “You need to be tough on yourself. We must rely on the quality of our products to regain the trust of our domestic milk powder.”