29 Jul 2016

Sheep milk company markets to Taiwan

8:55 am on 29 July 2016

A New Zealand company has launched two sheep milk powder products in Taiwan which are the first of their kind on the market.

Spring Sheep's milk powder product will soon be sold in Taiwan.

Spring Sheep's milk powder product will soon be sold in Taiwan. Photo: Supplied

Spring Sheep Milk is a partnership between Landcorp and investment company SLC Group, and milks 3000 ewes on a block of Wairakei Estate on the Central Plateau.

The company specialises in nutritional powders for adults in Asia and gelato for the New Zealand market.

Chief executive Scottie Chapman said the company was starting out by launching two products.

"We have a whole milk powder that we are selling through a pharmaceutical chain over here and in October we also launch a gold powder that is a probiotic powder - it's sheep milk powder plus probiotics and prebiotics for gut health."

Spring Sheep Milk chief executive Scottie Chapman

Spring Sheep Milk chief executive Scottie Chapman Photo: Supplied

He said Taiwan was the ideal market.

Taiwanese advertising for Spring Sheep Milk's new powder products.

Taiwanese advertising for Spring Sheep Milk's new powder products. Photo: Supplied

"It has a very sophisticated consumer who appreciates quality, and with our products alternative dairy globally is going really, really well and we wanted to choose a market that understood value and the value of New Zealand.

"We've partnered up here with a pharmaceutical company and we have access to drug stores with our own branded products which is a fantastic way to get through directly to consumers."

Mr Chapman said as the farm in Taupo became more developed they hoped to grow the market.

"This year about 95 percent of what we made came up here [Taiwan] and it's about 60,000 700g cans.

"As we expand, Taiwan is always going to be our primary market that we work off and then expand one or two markets every year.

Spring Sheep Milk's gelato will be launched in New Zealand later this year.

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