The dairy industry is trapped by "bacteria" and high-quality development needs to overcome obstacles and increase efforts

Milk, milk powder, yogurt, cheese, butter... Driven by the strong adjustment of the peoples dietary structure, China has already become a major producer and consumer of dairy products. In recent years, it has produced more than 30 million tons of dairy products annually, and the dazzling array of dairy products has played an important supporting role in building a healthy China.



Lactic acid bacteria and probiotic preparations are key raw materials for producing dairy products such as yogurt, milk powder, cheese, and beverages. Due to the late start of research on lactic acid bacteria, probiotic strains, and formulations in China, the production of lactic acid bacteria and probiotic formulations required by domestic dairy enterprises mainly relies on imports, which has become a bottleneck restricting the competitiveness and efficiency improvement of Chinas dairy industry market. With the increase of scientific research efforts, domestic research institutions and enterprises have successively achieved some results in recent years. However, compared with developed countries in the dairy industry, there is still a significant gap in the research and industrialization level of lactic acid bacteria and probiotics used in dairy products in China. Experts suggest further strengthening relevant research to meet the growing demand for high-quality dairy products.



Domestic microbial agent research and development continuously achieves new breakthroughs



Lactic acid bacteria are an essential ingredient in the production of fermented dairy products such as yogurt and cheese, which determine the taste and nutritional content after fermentation. Probiotics have various functional characteristics, and when added to dairy products such as milk powder, they can promote intestinal peristalsis and regulate gastrointestinal function. In recent years, some domestic research institutions and enterprises have continuously increased their research and development efforts, and have achieved a number of results.



In the early 1990s, although the domestic dairy industry, especially fermented dairy products, had entered a period of rapid development, the supply of microbial agents was basically monopolized by foreign enterprises.



Since 1989, Professor Zhang Heping from Inner Mongolia Agricultural University has led a team to collect samples of naturally fermented dairy products (such as fermented cow milk, horse milk, camel milk, sheep milk, yak milk, cheese) from 32 countries around the world. By the end of last year, 47573 strains of lactic acid bacteria had been isolated and preserved, covering 33 genera, 138 species, and subspecies of lactic acid bacteria. In October 2023, the lactic acid bacteria germplasm resource library established by Inner Mongolia Agricultural University was recognized by the Chinese Society for Food Science and Technology as the worlds largest known lactic acid bacteria germplasm resource library.



Through continuous efforts, Zhang Hepings team has identified a batch of lactic acid bacteria and probiotics with independent intellectual property rights from the collected strains, such as Lactobacillus casei Zhang, Bifidobacterium V9, Lactobacillus plantarum P-8, Lactobacillus probio-M8, etc., breaking the technological monopoly of foreign enterprises in this field, and some have been transformed in dairy enterprises.



In recent years, the Environmental Microbiology Research Group of the School of Life Sciences at Lanzhou University has also focused on the research of lactic acid bacteria and probiotics. The fermented lactobacillus GR3 isolated and identified has been used in the production of yogurt and other products.



Local dairy companies are also increasingly emphasizing the research and application of lactic acid bacteria and probiotics. Hong Weilian, Director of Yili Probiotics Research Center, said that currently, the group has successfully developed a lactic acid bacteria fermentation agent. In addition, three probiotic strains have been developed, which can meet the needs of intestinal health, weight control, and oral health. In 2021, Mengniu Group developed a variety of excellent probiotic strains with independent intellectual property rights through independent strain isolation and screening, as well as functional research. It has mastered key technologies for the production of partially fermented dairy products, which helps to reduce dependence on imported strains. Junlebao Group has established a bacterial strain library with over 1000 strains of lactic acid bacteria, and has developed independent intellectual property rights for Lactobacillus paracasei N1115, Lactobacillus plantarum N3117, and independent yogurt fermentation agents.



There is a large gap in research and application, and bacterial agents heavily rely on imports



In recent years, although China has made gratifying breakthroughs in the research and application of lactic acid bacteria, probiotic strains, and formulations in dairy products, due to the late start of research and development, there is still a significant gap in Chinas research and application level compared to developed countries in the dairy industry. The main reasons are that there are few types of bacteria identified independently, weak technological accumulation in the production of formulations, and small scale of industrial application, which make it difficult to adapt to the requirements of product upgrading and upgrading in Chinas dairy industry.



Hong Weilian said that for the production of dairy products, different strains need to be scientifically proportioned, which requires a high number of independently mastered strains and technical processes. Foreign research and development is early, and technology and intellectual property accumulation are strong. Leading foreign enterprises such as Danisco have obvious advantages in this field, and it is difficult for China to break through in the short term. Currently, the import proportion of fermentation agents is as high as 90% -95%. The reporter found through searching on e-commerce platforms using the keyword "yogurt fermentation agent" that most merchants have labeled their product pages with slogans such as "using imported strains from Europe".



In addition, there is a lack of industry standards in the current market, and there is a mix of good and bad. In order to cater to peoples concerns about health, many products in the market are hyped up and advertised falsely or exaggeratedly. Taking probiotics as an example, according to Tianyanchas data, there are currently over 3000 production and processing enterprises in China that have developed the concept of probiotics, of which 45% were established within 5 years. Wang Jicheng, a teacher at the School of Food Science and Engineering at Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, said that due to the lack of national and industry standards for probiotics in China, many strains are currently being introduced into the market by some companies without clinical data support, resulting in uneven product quality and difficult to verify efficacy in the industry.



Intensify research and development efforts to promote the integration of production and research



In the past few years, China has vigorously promoted the strategy of revitalizing the dairy industry, and the innovation capabilities of local enterprises in new technologies and products of dairy products have greatly improved. The construction of a strong dairy country has continuously taken new steps, effectively supporting the consumption upgrading needs of the Chinese people.



In response to the difficulties and bottlenecks faced by the research and application of lactic acid bacteria, probiotics, and related microbial agents in China, experts and enterprise personnel such as Zhang Heping suggest that the research on lactic acid bacteria, probiotic strains, and formulations for dairy products should be identified as one of the fundamental and key breakthrough directions for the upgrading of Chinas dairy industry. Key special projects should be established to drive the improvement of research and development level.



Experts believe that Chinas current research and development foundation in lactic acid bacteria, probiotic strains, and formulations is weak. It is recommended to further increase research investment, establish national key research and development projects, and drive the overall level of research and development to improve.



At present, the research and application of lactic acid bacteria and probiotics involve multiple disciplines such as food, medicine, and genetic engineering. Hong Weilian et al. gave an example that in recent years, there has been increasing international attention to the medicinal value of probiotics, while domestic research lags behind. The key is the lack of interdisciplinary research platforms, teams, and talents. It is recommended to focus on laying out a number of research and development bases for probiotics and lactic acid bacteria, cultivating and strengthening talent teams, and establishing industry university research innovation alliances.



In addition, national standards should be formulated as soon as possible to regulate the market. Chen Yongfu, Vice Dean of the School of Food Science and Engineering at Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, believes that currently there are no national or industry standards for probiotics, leading to the phenomenon of "bad currency driving out good currency" in the market. It is recommended to formulate national and industry standards as soon as possible, strengthen intellectual property protection, and raise the entry threshold for related products from the safety and quality aspects of bacterial strains.