Yili to Upgrade the Overseas R&D System

- European "Food Valley" to Welcome the First Chinese R&D Center

WAGENINGEN, Netherlands, Feb. 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Chinese dairy industry has been facing a good beginning in the first month of the lunar year of the horse. On February 25 in the Netherlands, the highest standard overseas R&D Center of the Chinese dairy industry has been formally set up. Yili Group, ranked 12^th in the world, announced its establishment of a Netherlands-based and Europe-targeted R&D entity jointly with the top institution in the European life science field - Wageningen University - as well as over 15,000 R&D employees from the European "Food Valley." It was not only one of the most important strategic cooperation programs between the Chinese dairy industry and an overseas R&D institution, but also another overseas investment by Yili following investments in New Zealand, USA and Italy.

(Photo: http://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20140225/0861401031 )

At the launching ceremony, Yili Group announced its eight research directions of the R&D Center in 2014 to more than one hundred representatives from famous universities and research institutions in Europe present at the ceremony. Chen Xu - Chinese ambassador in the Netherlands, Jeroen Nijland - Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency Director, Geert van Rumund - Mayor of Wageningen, Aalt Dijkhuizen - Board Chairman of Wageningen University, and Pan Gang - Board Chairman of Yili Group, attended the inauguration ceremony.

In the address at the launching ceremony, Board Chairman of Yili Group, Pan Gang, summarized the reason for the establishment of the European R&D Center into one word: "challenge." He state "What kind of dairy products are needed in the future is a great challenge as well as a great opportunity. Confronted with the challenge and opportunity, Europe will become the most important part in the global R&D system of Yili."

According to the relevant principals of the European R&D Center, Yili hopes to achieve closer and platformization relationship with Europe on the basis of the several years' cooperation with several institutions in the world. "We shall not only cooperate with the top research institution, but also continue with the world-level research topics. What's more important is that we will invite global experts into our R&D team." It was revealed by the principal that the center would firstly focus on milk cow cultivation, dairy product research, and food security. "The European R&D Center will become our intelligent engine in terms of the three fields. Currently, we have begun the product R&D, and the result is predicted to be launched soon."

Wageningen University and R&D Center is the leading scientific research institution in the European life science field. With many world top food scientific research institutions and over 15,000 researchers in food and relevant specialties, the surrounding areas of the university are famous as the European "Food Valley," with global food and nutrition research clusters. It was the first time for a Chinese dairy product manufacturer to establish an overseas think-tank. Chairman of Wageningen University Aalt Dijkhuizen said that as the largest dairy product consuming market in the world, China supplies the milk for 1/6 of the world population, which is an extraordinary achievement. Wageningen University was willing to cooperate with Yili in promoting the progress of the global dairy industry.

"After the three large-scale resource allocations last year, the cooperation with Wageningen University indicated that the global networking strategy of Yili gradually shifted its focus onto the global R&D," commented a senior dairy analyzer of the Ministry of Agriculture and Member of Dairy Association of China, Chen Yu. The move could make full use of global science and technology and talents to enhance the self-innovation ability of the Chinese dairy industry, which is the important strategic direction of Chinese dairy manufacturers in future.

It was reported that within the same period when Yili European R&D Center was inaugurated, the organizer also held the Sino-Netherlands superior dairy industry seminar, during which the experts of the both countries discussed the important issues such as food security and industrial integration.