China’s Demand for New Zealand Milk Surges Five-Fold Since 2008

China’s milk imports from New Zealand surged more than five-fold since 2008 as rising incomes stoked demand, sending prices to a record and bolstering the economy as it recovers from the deadliest earthquake in 80 years.

China, the biggest importer of New Zealand dairy products by value, purchased about 353 million kilograms of the country’s milk products in 2010, up from 69 million kilograms in 2008, according to government data supplied by Fonterra Cooperative Group Ltd., the world’s largest exporter. Fonterra processes 95 percent of the country’s milk and earns a fifth of its export revenues, the company said.