Fonterra’s foray into Chinese dairy farming continues unabated, with the dairy giant announcing its plans to establish another farm in Hebei Province. 

The new 40 million dollar farm means Fonterra will now have a triad of dairy farms in China.  

The head of Fonterra’s Chinese operations, Philip Turner, says demand for fresh milk in China is expected to triple over the next decade, and the new farm would allow Fonterra to boost domestic milk production in China, to around 90 million litres.

The new farm will have 3,200 New Zealand born-and-bred cows, which will produce 28 million litres of milk per year.

In October, Fonterra says it will be shipping a further 3000 cows up to China to populate its farms. 

The new farm is about 115km from Fonterra’s first Chinese farm – Tangshan Farm – and the company says it is just the next step, in a plan to build a hub of farms over the next five years.

Tangshan Farm was established as a pilot project in 2007, to test Fonterra's ability to produce Kiwi-standard milk in China.

Agriculture Minister David Carter, says the company’s expansion into China is purely a commercial decision for Fonterra.

"The China domestic market is huge and there is potential for some of this to be supplied domestically from China.

"The Chinese are going to get the expertise one way or another from around the world. I think Fonterra now see it as an opportunity for it being there first-hand, securing the profits that can be made by Chinese dairy interests for Fonterra itself."