Present me a comfort retailer or grocery store the place Dutch Woman’s iconic blue packaging is absent from the cabinets.

You’d most likely wrestle to take action, and I feel that alone speaks volumes in regards to the model’s reputation.

I’ve by no means actually given a lot thought to the place it originated from although, assuming that it was a world model—Dutch, most likely.

And I’m not precisely mistaken, however neither am I utterly proper. It’s a bit difficult, and curiously, you may hint the model’s Malaysian presence again to Petaling Jaya.

Many years of dairy diversification

It began with Royal Friesland Meals foraying into the Malay Peninsula in 1954. 

For a short introduction, it was a Dutch company that handled dairy and fruit-based merchandise. (In 2008, it merged with Campina, one other Dutch dairy company, and got here to be often known as FrieslandCampina.)

Royal Friesland Meals needed to market sweetened condensed milk imported from the Netherlands in Malaysia and Singapore, so it fashioned Friesland (Malaya) Pte Ltd.

Nearly a decade later, in 1963, it arrange Pacific Milk Industries (Malaya) and commissioned a manufacturing unit in Petaling Jaya, Selangor. 

This turned the dad or mum company’s first abroad manufacturing facility, and was tasked with manufacturing sweetened condensed milk.

It was accomplished in 1965, and has continued churning out dairy merchandise for the previous few many years. 

1968 rolled round, and Pacific Milk Industries would make history by turning into the primary dairy company to be listed on Kuala Lumpur and Singapore’s respective inventory exchanges.

Years would move, and in 1975, the company would once more make the information for 2 issues: a rebrand, and a brand new product.

Pacific Milk Industries would come to be often known as Dutch Child for the following decade or so, and would make Dutch Child Modified Child Meals.

Because the native dairy trade continued to mature, Dutch Child didn’t relaxation on its laurels. 

It started manufacturing sterilised milk in plastic bottles in 1983, and in 1984 would once more change its title to replicate the additional diversification of its merchandise.

That is how it will develop into the family title Dutch Woman Milk Industries (Dutch Woman), with the purpose of making merchandise for shoppers of all ages.

In 1988, it will develop into the primary to introduce formulated milk powder for youngsters in Malaysia, the model reported.

A 12 months later, it will delist from the Singapore Inventory Change in accordance with the Malaysian authorities’s efforts to advertise the Kuala Lumpur Inventory Change.

Heading in the direction of more healthy ambitions

Between the early 2000s and the flip of a decade, Dutch Woman would churn out extra modifications. Specifically, a brand new model emblem, and the launch of its yoghurts and yoghurt drinks.

On the identical time, the company was engaged on making its merchandise more healthy. This led to the pivotal resolution to stop their manufacturing of condensed milk in 2011.

“It was a tricky resolution, however the fitting resolution,” then-Managing Director Tarang Gupta informed South China Morning Publish in 2019. “Sure, it’s milk, however on the finish of the day it has a variety of sugar. Then we began lowering sugar throughout the board.”

This included reformulating its Rising Up Milk to exclude sucrose, and ultimately its different merchandise adopted go well with.

One other change to its Rising Up Milk was the addition of extra Vitamin D to its formulation, which Gupta mentioned they have been the primary to do. “The remainder of the market adopted after,” he added. 

Championing native cow milk

Though the dad or mum company of Dutch Woman is owned by a cooperative of Dutch dairy farmers, the model nonetheless performs a big function in championing native milk, and the native dairy trade as a complete.

In 2013, it launched the Farmer2Farmer programme. This noticed Dutch farmers coming to Malaysia yearly to share their century-old wealth of expertise, greatest practices, and experience with native dairy farmers. 

Among the issues centered on in the programme embody good farming administration and administration, good milking/dealing with practices, good breeding and fertility programmes, hygiene administration, and extra.

These are achieved with the purpose of enhancing the standard and quantity of cattle uncooked milk in Malaysia.

Dutch Woman additionally formally established a strategic partnership with the Division of Veterinary Providers Malaysia (DVS) in 2021.

Since Malaysia is aiming for a 100% Self-Sufficiency Degree (SSL) for native contemporary milk manufacturing by 2025 as a part of the Nationwide Dairy Trade Growth Programme, the partnership will additional drive growth in this space.

As Dutch Woman moved into the 12 months 2023, it introduced a significant change to the business as a part of its optimisation train for its dairy manufacturing operations.

Keep in mind its Petaling Jaya facility? The milk powder operations there shall be discontinued by Might 31, 2023, the model focused.

Their new Bandar Enstek manufacturing facility may also not be pursuing the manufacturing of milk powder, however the company assured that this shouldn’t have an effect on their merchandise in the Malaysian market.

In the identical November 2022 report, Dutch Woman additionally introduced that it will likely be discontinuing the manufacturing of a few of its different strains in phases over the following two years.

Whether or not this can have an effect on Dutch Woman’s standing in the native dairy market remains to be unknown, but it surely’s probably that the model could produce other plans it merely hasn’t revealed.

The Malaysian marketplace for milk has been a reasonably attention-grabbing one to watch over the previous few years, as a result of we’ve seen fairly a shift in client behaviour from dairy to plant-based merchandise.

Not less than, that’s what may very well be assumed from how manufacturers are ramping up the manufacturing of non-dairy milk. Final 12 months, we compiled a surprisingly strong listing of manufacturers promoting non-dairy milk in Malaysia.

Even native contemporary milk model Farm Recent has seen alternatives in this sector, and rolled out its personal vary of plant-based milk utilizing soy, oat, and almond.

Dutch Woman has all the time stood firmly on the idea that dairy and its calcium content material are integral to our well being although, so it’ll be attention-grabbing to see the way it navigates the fashionable client phase in the close to future.

• Be taught extra about Dutch Woman right here.
• Examine extra Malaysian startup tales right here.

Featured Picture Credit score: Dutch Woman