Dairy Association of China (DAC) Annual Work Report 2024— Presented at the 7th Session of the 7th Council

Review of major work in 2024

I. High-Quality and High-Standard Organization of "Two Sessions and One Exhibition" From July 3 to 5, 2024, the 15th Dairy Industry Conference of the 6th China Dairy Association, the D20 Forum on Dairy Industry, and the 2024 China Dairy Industry Exhibition were grandly held in Wuhan. During the preparation period, the Association's Strategic Development Committee and Secretariat conducted extensive research and in-depth analysis, proposing two strategic considerations: First, using innovation and empowerment as driving forces to lead industrial transformation and upgrading at a higher level, continuously seeking new economic growth points and proactively addressing the pressure of overall industry efficiency decline; Second, leveraging integration and collaboration to guide balanced development among breeding, processing, and consumption sectors, stabilizing reasonable growth in production capacity and consumption to achieve sustainable industry development. Based on this foundation, the conference theme was established as "Digital Intelligence Empowerment Leads Industrial Growth Points, Industry Integration Drives High-Quality Development of Dairy Industry". Concurrently, with the 2024 China Dairy Development Strategy Seminar, the 2024 China Cheese Development Summit Forum, and the 2024 Infant Formula Milk Powder Industry Development Seminar as main themes, 14 thematic forums were held concurrently. These forums focused on hot topics and sensitive issues in industry development, offering insights and solutions from various perspectives to spark resonance and feedback. All conference agendas reflected the rational thinking and practical proposals of council members and colleagues under this theme. It can be said that during this special period, "Two Sessions and One Exhibition" has united hearts, boosted morale, strengthened confidence, and generated strong social resonance. This is precisely the core of our continuous pursuit of high quality and high standards.

II. Effective Strategic Development Research In 2024, the work of the Strategic Development Committee achieved remarkable results. Confronting industry challenges, it keenly identified imbalances in production capacity supply through price fluctuation analysis; reflected the establishment of interest linkage mechanisms from the life-or-death decisions faced by social ranches; proposed category structure adjustments amid sluggish consumption; and advocated higher-level transformation and upgrading from shrinking corporate profits. The "Insight into Gold" ——2024 China Dairy Industry Development Strategy Seminar organized by the Strategic Development Committee served as a concentrated report on research achievements over the past year. Focusing on experts, scholars, and business representatives from various sectors, participants discussed development strategies for China's dairy industry. Notably, three keynote reports were delivered by Vice Minister Yu Kangzhen of the State Council, Secretary Chen Mengshan, and Academician Ren Fazheng. Two thematic reports were presented by Director Wang Jiaqi and Chief Li Shengli, with nine keynote speeches from Yili, Mengniu, Bright Dairy, Junlebao, Youran Animal Husbandry, Modern Dairy, Ausnutria Group, Jiarihe Animal Husbandry, and ShouNong Livestock. It can be said that planning for the future begins with action in the present.

III. The Secretariat's Truth-Seeking and Pragmatic Approach The planning of the Two Sessions and One Exhibition, along with the implementation of strategic development tasks, all demonstrate the Secretariat's commitment to truth-seeking and pragmatism. This year, adhering to its mission of coordination, communication, research, and service, the Secretariat has played a pivotal bridging role. Breakthrough progress has been achieved in key areas including boosting consumption, advancing seed industry development, strengthening stakeholder connections, delivering targeted services, and enhancing public outreach.

(1) Implementation and Promotion. Promote the implementation of the "Guidelines for Expanding and Enhancing the Quality of China's Dairy Consumption". The core content of the research opinions was studied, and the "National Scientific Milk Consumption' One Billion' Special Action Plan" was formulated and released. The initiative reached "thousands" of venues in third-and fourth-tier cities and rural areas, covering "millions" of households and "tens of millions" of people. The successful implementation of this campaign has sparked strong social resonance. Steadily advancing the national "Student Milk Drinking Program" to deepen its practical implementation. In 2024,103 Chinese student milk drinking facility permits were issued and 171 milk source bases underwent certification reviews; 71 new applications for milk source base certification, 96 renewal applications, and 4 modification applications were processed. Currently, the average daily supply of student milk in schools reaches 27.75 million servings, covering over 100,000 schools across 31 provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities), benefiting 32.1 million students. Actively promoting the implementation of the national dairy cattle genetic improvement program. The National Dairy Cattle Genetic Evaluation Center was established to undertake major scientific and technological projects in dairy farming. The program organized nationwide breeding technology promotion activities including dairy cattle breed registration, production performance testing, and body measurement. In 2024, over 400,000 DHI reports were provided to dairy farms, covering more than 4.5 million dairy cows; over 70,000 dairy cows were appraised, with a body measurement team of 122 members and technical services extended to 1,382 dairy farms across 30 provinces and autonomous regions. Breakthroughs in platform construction and data integration. In 2024, the China Dairy Industry Big Data Platform was officially launched, aggregating 120 million industry data entries. This initiative drives the integration and co-development of industrial digitalization and digital industrialization. At present, the number of platform accounts has exceeded 1,500, and the cycle of data production, analysis, circulation and application has initially emerged. It actively maintains the interests of China's dairy industry internationally, and has been praised and thanked in writing by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Commerce and the Development Research Center of The State Council.

(II) Image Promotion: The association has continuously maintained its characteristic promotional platforms including the official website, WeChat public account, Toutiao account, and periodicals. In 2024, the website achieved a cumulative click-through rate of 118,000, while the WeChat public account received 909,000 cumulative views and the Toutiao account garnered 1.88 million total impressions. The journal "China Dairy Cattle" published 12 issues with nearly 40,000 copies distributed, entering the ranks of China's core academic journals, and its annual report included over 300 articles and statistical tables. The "Dian Sheng Jin—— 2024 China Dairy Industry Development Strategy Seminar" attracted 1.404 million viewers, with over 5,000 conference articles published across various media platforms, achieving a cumulative click-through rate exceeding ten million. The publicity efforts were both impactful and vibrant.

(3) Precision Service In 2024, the Secretariat has done a lot of concrete and practical work in policy advocacy, ministerial coordination, standard formulation, joint and agricultural support, industrial assistance, interest linkage and international exchanges, which has been recognized by relevant ministries and departments.

IV. Effective Work of Local Dairy Associations and Specialized Committees In 2024, dairy associations across China actively promoted benefit-sharing mechanisms, effectively safeguarding farmers' interests while advancing integrated production, processing, and sales systems. They implemented the "100,000" initiative to boost dairy consumption, reaching over 300 venues and benefiting more than 3,000 households and 30,000 communities. Specialized committees leveraged their expertise from thousands of experts to conduct innovative research, integrate findings, and promote practical applications. These efforts included organizing over 100 training sessions for more than 10,000 participants, conducting 30+ policy research projects, and providing valuable insights for industry development and policymaking.

V. Strictly Standardized Branch Work In 2024, under the correct leadership of the Party Committee of National Industry Associations and Chambers of Commerce and the Fourth United Party Committee, the Party branch of the association adhered to the guidance of Party building, delved into studying Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and resolutely implemented all decisions and plans of the CPC Central Committee; comprehensively strengthened strict Party self-governance, strictly managed internal affairs, and achieved significant improvements in institutionalization, standardization, democratization, and collective decision-making, leading the association's high-quality development through high-quality Party building. On December 2, 2024, the Ministry of Civil Affairs officially released Announcement No.575 regarding the 2024 National Social Organization Evaluation Grades (Second Batch): The China Dairy Association was successfully rated as a "4A-level" national social organization by the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Work Plan for 2025 In 2025, the association will closely address industry challenges and opportunities, fully leverage its unique advantages of being deeply rooted in the industry, serving enterprises, assisting government, and consolidating collective strength. With an unwavering spirit and proactive commitment, we will maintain clear responsibilities during our journey forward, actively fulfill obligations in serving the overall situation, and drive the high-quality development of China's dairy industry through pragmatic approaches.

In 2025, we will focus on the following nine areas:

1. Conduct in-depth strategic research to accurately grasp the industry development environment and future trends. Three major research topics have been specifically established: "Strategic Measures for the Transformation and Upgrading of China's Dairy Cattle Breeding Industry under New Circumstances", "Strategic Measures for Optimizing Dairy Product Structure and Consumption Upgrade", and "China Dairy Industry 2030: Future Development Strategy and Pathways", which will guide the high-quality development of the dairy industry over the next five years. Collaborate with China Agricultural University, Modern Dairy Industry, and Mengniu Dairy to draft the national standard "Technical Specifications for Project-Based Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Assessment and Ruminant Feed Optimization". This standard will become the only national standard related to ruminant feeding management within China's "Dual Carbon" standard system. Focus on public science popularization and interdisciplinary talent cultivation. Leveraging the Rushiniu large model, we will innovatively promote consumer awareness of nutritional health and continuing education for professionals, providing talent guarantees and intellectual support for sustainable development.

II. Carefully Planning the Two Sessions and One Exhibition The Two Sessions and One Exhibition will focus on key aspects such as "enhancing breeding competitiveness, adjusting dairy product structures and deep processing, expanding consumer groups and distribution channels, integrating production, processing and sales, the 25th anniversary of the National Student Milk Program, promoting the new national standard for Sterilized Milk, and the" 15th Five-Year Plan "development guidelines for China's dairy industry". We will scientifically design thematic content, meticulously plan specialized seminars, innovatively curate premium exhibitions, and jointly create the Xiamen Two Sessions and One Exhibition from July 13 to 15, showcasing new features, highlighting fresh highlights, achieving new leaps, and creating new glories!

III. Actively Promoting the Enhancement of Livestock Breeding (1) Conducting in-depth analysis of industry trends to drive industrial upgrading. Regularly releasing dairy farming analysis reports, scientifically assessing development trends in dairy cattle breeding, innovatively proposing industrial development strategies and decision-making recommendations to promote supply-demand balance in the dairy industry. (2) Continuously leveraging technological productivity to enhance core competitiveness in breeding. Implementing national genetic evaluation of dairy cattle, continuously expanding the scope of registered dairy cattle breeds and varieties, improving the application level of production performance testing, and increasing the proportion of body measurement assessments. (3) Upgrading big data platforms to facilitate digital transformation. Continuously refining the functions of China's dairy industry big data platform, developing real-time multi-source data collection and modeling capabilities, and promoting digital transformation in dairy farming. (4) Strengthening benefit linkage mechanisms to enhance industrial resilience. Implementing the "Guidelines on Further Strengthening the Construction of Dairy Industry Benefit Linkage Mechanisms" to ensure farmers' income and stabilize milk supply. (5) Comprehensively enhancing technology promotion and services to drive efficiency and quality improvement. Providing customized herd improvement technical services for dairy farms focusing on breed registration, body measurement assessment, genetic evaluation, and core herd selection.

IV. Actively Supporting the Processing Industry (1) Promoting Dairy Consumption. Preparing for the 25th anniversary of China's "Student Milk Drinking Program"; actively promoting the implementation of the new national standard for Sterilized Milk. (2) Enhancing Product Innovation. Advancing the development and structural optimization of cheese, butter, whey protein, and functional proteins, bridging research achievements with corporate needs. (3) Driving Digital-Intelligent Transformation. Accelerating digital and intelligent transformation in the dairy processing industry, providing enterprises with digital transformation consulting, technical support, and resource integration services.

V. Enhancing Member Services (1) Carefully organize one Board Meeting and two Executive Council Meetings in 2025. (2) Develop an online platform for members to achieve one-stop services. (3) Innovate service offerings to continuously expand capabilities and improve service quality.

VI. Innovating Organizational Brand Promotion (1) Planning and producing the commemorative album "Striving in the New Era, Marching Forward on a New Journey——A Pictorial of High-Quality Development in China's Dairy Industry", to reflect on the achievements of China's dairy industry in recent years, strengthen confidence in future high-quality development, inspire dairy professionals to stay true to their original aspirations, forge ahead with determination, and jointly paint a new chapter for China's dairy industry. (2) The association's editorial department will drive innovation-driven development, continuously improve the quality of the journal "China Dairy Cattle", and consolidate its position as a core academic journal. (3) Optimizing the operational strategies of the China Dairy Cattle WeChat official account. Building a multi-dimensional communication matrix that deeply integrates print media with new media will provide robust support for industry development.

VII. Enhancing the Role of Local Dairy Associations and Professional Committees To address challenges, strengthen stakeholder partnerships, and boost consumption, local dairy associations should develop practical and innovative solutions tailored to regional realities. Professional committees should play a leading role in establishing mechanisms and developing operational models, while providing robust guidance to ensure effective implementation.

8. Strengthen international exchanges and cooperation. Strengthen cooperation and exchanges with international dairy organizations and foreign embassies, and organize members to participate in international dairy exchange and cooperation activities.

9. Strengthen Party Building and Overall Leadership Strengthen ideological and political construction, thoroughly implement the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the important instructions and comments of General Secretary Xi Jinping, promote the integration of party building and business, and promote the work of the association to a new level under the guidance of party building.