Kauri site exports $42.5m to China
North’s hard work helps celebrate Year of the Pig
As the Year of the Pig starts (February 5), families will be gathering across China for the festive Chinese New Year season. And they’re likely to be eating dairy products made in Northland.
Fonterra’s Kauri site exported around $42.5 million in products to China for consumption in 2017/18. That’s about $237 per person in Northland. And Fonterra’s Maungaturoto site exported around $40.8m in products to China in 2017/18 — about $228 per person in Northland. These made up the $83.3m in exports dispatched to China from Fonterra Northland sites, which works out to $465 per person in Northland (population: 179,100 at June 2018).
The Northland dairy exports were among some of the $3.8 billion/ around 740,000 metric tonnes of product sent to China in 2017/18 from across New Zealand. Eleven per cent of all dairy in China — the world’s biggest market — comes from Fonterra farmers.
Cream, a major export from Kauri, ends up in some of the 500 million tea macchiatos made with Fonterra cream every year. Half of the cream cakes made in China use Fonterra cream. Cream cakes are increasingly popular around Chinese New Year when families gather to celebrate.
Kauri site manager Rowan Hartigan says it’s a proud moment to see products made in Northland ending up on plates in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai.
Fonterra China president Christina Zhu says: “China makes up a quarter of Fonterra’s exports last year. Our dairy is consumed by around 130 million people. We’re a big part of the local economy, providing jobs for the region and helping New Zealand succeed on the world stage.”