Hamburg, November 2025 – The demand for meat and dairy products as well as convenience products is rising in Asia, in step with the region’s growth in population and prosperity. To address this growth even more effectively, ingredients specialist Hydrosol is continuing to invest in its regional locations and maintains close collaborations with its local sales organizations. The expansion of its technical infrastructure is an important part of this, as a current example in Singapore shows. In addition to the existing plant in China, a UHT pilot plant is currently being installed in Singapore to better serve local manufacturers.

This state-of-the-art plant facilitates the development and improvement of formulations for dairy products. For example, with UHT milk and flavored milk drinks, the stability, texture, and flavor need to be retained over an extended shelf life. With vegetable fat creams, the focus is on optimizing whippability, viscosity, and heat stability. For yogurt and fermented milk products, the goals are better mouthfeel, creamy consistency, and thermostable products.

Apart from dairy products, Hydrosol is also well-positioned to support the development of meat applications for ASEAN customers. With meat and poultry products, the focus is on the ideal binding, juiciness, and texture in processed foods like meats, sausages, nuggets, and ready meals. 

In addition to its technical facilities, the company also wants to be a local sparring partner for its customers across the region. Through close collaboration, Hydrosol helps manufacturers meet challenges in formulation and processing, and ensures smooth transitions from pilot testing to large-scale production. “Customer-specific consulting has long been a central building block in Hydrosol’s DNA,” emphasizes Dr. Dorotea Pein, Director Technology and Innovation. “With our tailor-made solutions, we want to help manufacturers react quickly to regional market trends and consumer demands.”  

New markets in focus

Another objective is to conquer new markets. In the Chinese market, for example, milk products are gaining traction, particularly in the B2B segment. Due to oversupply in retail, leading Chinese dairies are increasingly focusing on food service with special product concepts. They are expanding their product lines with solutions for restaurants as well as coffee and tea franchises. Tea beverages are very popular, and milk bases and coffee whitener/creamers are frequently used in bubble tea shops. Coffee shops are also popular. Strategic partnerships of leading milk producers with chains like Starbucks illustrate the potential. 

According to market research, in 2025 the coffee sector is projected to generate added demand for milk products on the order of 26.5 billion renminbi, or just under 3.65 billion USD. Demand for thick milk and milk bases for new tea drinks is forecast to rise by over 20 percent annually. Cheese is also seeing rising demand in Chinese food service. High-quality cream, butter, and cheese product categories are still dominated by international brands, but local vendors are gaining ground thanks to shorter supply chains, fresher products, and competitive pricing. 

Health-oriented innovations for milk drinks are another growth market. For example, sugar-free options are in demand. According to Nielsen IQ, last year milk drinks were the only category in the Chinese milk market to show growth (+11.3 percent). With its stabilizing systems in the Stabiprime series, Hydrosol offers customers the ability to produce a wide range of milk drinks that can be enriched with micronutrients or proteins to offer consumers the added health value they are looking for. And not just in China: the product concepts for foodservice and retail also offer attractive potential for other countries in the Asia-Pacific area. The tailor-made solutions are likewise aligned with users’ requirements, as Dr. Pein notes: “Working together with manufacturers, we develop product concepts that are a precise fit, as well as process optimization methods where necessary, for milk products and any other applications.”  

About Hydrosol 

Hydrosol GmbH & Co. KG headquartered in Ahrensburg near Hamburg, Germany, is a fast-growing international supplier of food stabilizers, with subsidiaries around the world. Its specialists develop and produce tailor-made stabilizer systems for dairy products, ice cream and desserts, delicatessen foods, and ready meals, as well as meat, sausage, and fish products. With an international network of 20 subsidiaries and numerous qualified foreign representatives, the company is represented in the world’s key markets. As a member of the independent, owner-operated Stern-Wywiol Gruppe with a total of 13 sister companies, Hydrosol can make use of many synergies. The company has access to the knowledge of some 125 R&D specialists and to the extensive applications technology of the large Stern-Technology Center in Ahrensburg, Germany, as well as shared production facilities and the Group’s own logistics resources. This lets it offer customers a high degree of flexibility and innovation. With revenues exceeding 668 million euros and 1974 employees around the globe, the Stern-Wywiol Gruppe is one of the world’s most successful international suppliers of food & feed ingredients.