At the 2025 Global Dairy Congress held in Amsterdam, China’s Yili Group reinforced its position as a global dairy powerhouse by winning major awards across multiple categories. Securing top honors in Intolerance‑Friendly Innovation, Ice Cream, Artisan Dairy, and CSR/Sustainability, Yili stood out among 177 entries spanning 20 award categories—marking its sixth consecutive year of major wins at the World Dairy Innovation Awards .
Yili’s strategic emphasis on R&D and international collaboration underpins its success. The company now operates 15 innovation centers across Asia, Europe, and Oceania, including a national-level dairy innovation hub and the Netherlands‑based Innovation Center Europe, launched eleven years ago . In partnership with top-tier institutions like Wageningen University and Lincoln University, Yili has advanced nutrition research across life stages—from infant formula (e.g., Jinlingguan Zhenhu Platinum) to cheese, probiotics, and sugar‑reduction techniques—securing 28 patents from its breast‑milk research .
International observers—including IDF Director‑General Laurence Rycken—have lauded China’s rapid dairy innovation prowess. She highlighted the synergy between Europe’s heritage (fermented products, cheese) and China’s strengths (automation, digital scaling) while praising Yili’s integration of environmental, social, and economic dimensions into its “roadmap to sustainability”.
Industry Insight
Yili’s consistent global recognition and R&D intensity underscore a pivotal shift: Chinese dairy firms are not just scaling—they are competing at the innovation frontier, reshaping global product development, sustainability metrics, and talent pathways in the sector.
Source : Dairynews7x7 June 23rd 2025 Read the full story here