Shanghai, China, 15-11-2013 – Italian quality wins over China. Sterilgarda will produce milk for Yili Group (Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Company Limited), the largest Chinese dairy producer, with which an important partnership agreement has been signed. The milk produced by Sterilgarda will be sold throughout China by Yili under its own brand. Listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the Yili Group recorded operating revenues of 5.9 billion dollars during the first nine months of 2013.

Sterilgarda’s CEO, Fernando Sarzi, explained during the partnership presentation ceremony in Shanghai that “China is certainly the market currently experiencing the fastest growth and Yili, as the leading brand in the Chinese dairy sector, will be able to rely on high-quality products. Our company,” continued Sarzi, “has always focused on innovation, Made in Italy and wellbeing, offering its partners guarantees of food safety while respecting the Italian gastronomic tradition.”

The Executive President of Yili Group, Zhang Jianqiu, highlighted in his speech that globalization is an irreversible trend for the Chinese dairy sector and added: “Sterilgarda will be one of Yili’s most important partners. I believe today’s cooperation is only a starting point. Chinese consumers have grown and are increasingly similar to international consumers in terms of dairy consumption behavior.”

Thanks to investments in technology, Sterilgarda has radically innovated the milk sector with products previously unavailable on the market, such as microfiltered UHT milk, which guarantees maximum food safety and longer shelf life while maintaining the taste and organoleptic properties of milk. Thanks to the know-how acquired, Sterilgarda has established itself as a national and international benchmark for innovation in the dairy sector, as well as in the premium fruit juice segment with the recent launch of the “Pure Juice” line of natural juices and freshly squeezed juices.