The specialty milk producer A2 Corporation says it is ready to move into the lucrative milk powder and baby formula market.
The company, which also licenses intellectual property for its special protein milk to diary producers overseas, recorded a loss of $6.3 million in the year to March.
It says its milk, produced by cows with the A2-certified protein, is more similar to human milk than other cow milk on supermarket shelves.
The company recently raised $11.3 million in a share offer to institutional investors, and has topped that up with an extra $8 million in a share placement.
A2 Corporation's chief executive Anthony Lawler says the capital will be used to expand its business.
He says A2's milk powder is likely to sell in similar markets to Fonterra's products, but will appeal to consumers with specific health needs.
He says the detail of when A2's milk powder will go on sale is commercially sensitive.
A2's main market is Australia and Mr Lawler says it has started to show a profit on a monthly basis for the past three months.
He says in the last twelve months sales in Australia have tripled, from 300,000 litres a month to just under 900,000 litres a month.
Mr Lawler says that's a result of excellent marketing and informing key opinion leaders such as dieticians and scientists.
He says A2 is testing the US market for its products, where it expects to develop distribution deals soon.
The company also has a partnership with the South Korean dairy firm Lotte.
Mr Lawler says A2 licenses its intellectual property to the dairy company, which produces A2 products, and has strict quality control measures in place.
