April 9, 2008

Dairy UK downplays effects of China-New Zealand FTA

Dairy UK is playing down the effects of the China-New Zealand free trade agreement, saying that UK is focused on the domestic market, less on exports.

The organisation of dairy industry players in the UK said it did not expect the FTA between China and New Zealand to have any negative effects on UK's dairy industry, explaining that the UK and Europe are focused mainly on supplying products to the domestic market and was not reliant on exports.

According to a spokesperson from Dairy UK, for European companies that are exploring export markets, China is only one of many growing markets in Asia that was recording significant increases in demand for dairy products.

In addition, Dairy UK said that China was periodically proving to have a surplus of milk production, emphasising the instability of current dairy prices.