China can help boost Pakistan’s diary industry through low priced technologies: PCJCCI chief

Lahore: China can help boost Pakistan’s diary industry through the low priced technologies, a top business leader said.

Pakistan China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) President Wang Zihai maintained that the cooperation between China and Pakistan on dairy industry and multifarious demands for high-quality dairy products in China will provide a contemporary path of development for Pakistan’s dairy industry.

Wang Zihai expressed these views in a think-tank session held here at PCJCCI Secretariat.

“We have learned that Pakistan is the most important exporter and producer of dairy products in South Asia; whereas Chinese technologies are low-priced if we adopt the techniques and technology used by China, Pakistan could advance in this industry,” he added.

The PCJCCI President mentioned that China was willing to explore more about Pakistani dairy industry to see if it has the opportunity to be part of Pakistan in this sector.

“From 2011 to 2022, China’s dairy imports rose at a compound annual growth of 12.3 percent, and the demand is still expanding. Milk powder, liquid milk, high value-added dairy products such as whey, cheese, butter and cream are also in high demand in the Chinese market,” he pointed out.

On this occasion, PCJCCI Senior Vice President Ehsan Choudhry said that currently, China’s dairy imports mainly come from New Zealand (40.44 per cent), the Netherlands (17.15 per cent) and Australia (7.38 per cent). Pakistan’s government should support this industry to boost export and domestic production, especially to control the adulteration of loose milk.

He asserted that the local farmers are facing many problems, such as a lack of education, latest storage facilities, transfer of milk, and cold storage; the government should come forward to train and educate them with the modern technology.

In this way, he opined, the Chinese consumers’ demands for high-quality dairy products will be satisfied and in the meanwhile, Pakistan’s economic development, industrial upgrading and industrial chain extension can be expected in the process.

During the session, PCJCCI Vice President Sarfaraz Butt said that the animal husbandry was one of the pillar industries in Pakistan. “Specifically, Balochistan, where Gawadar Port under China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is located in, is with unique advantages of breeding beef cattle and dairy cows,” he stated.

He added that the construction of epidemic-free area in Gawadar Port was progressing in an orderly way. “If the industrial chain of China can be extended to Pakistan, it is expected to achieve win-win outcomes for the dairy industry of both countries,” he underlined.

The joint chamber’s Secretary General Salahuddin Hanif, in his comments, said that Pakistan was among world’s top five largest milk producers with over 60 million tons of milk production each year. “Such ventures and exports could definitely add value to Pakistan’s economy,” he remarked.