Not that milk production isn’t growing by leaps and bounds both here in the US and, as you’ll recall from a few days ago, Japan. Milk output in China is expected to double in the next 15 years, exceeding 50 million tons by 2020. The Dairy Association of China reports that demand will increase considerably as well, as per capita consumption is expected to more than double, from 18kg last year to 40kg in 2020. The current per capita consumption is only 1/5th the global average (and about 1/20th of this blogger’s rate).

The Dairy Association of China estimates that by 2020, China will rank third in global milk output. While President Hu and President Bush didn’t discuss dairy policy during the visit between the two global leaders in Washington this week, the Chinese policy is to restructure the nation’s agricultural economy, and developing the dairy industry is considered a key priority in that effort.