The war of fresh milk brands triggered

Big fresh milk brands have declared war by launching noisy marketing campaigns in an effort to obtain more market shares in the lucrative market.

The fresh milk market was never as hot as the powder milk market in the past. However, things have become quite different after TH True Milk appeared on the market with a marketing campaign to popularize its ‘clean milk.” A new war of the fresh milk brands has broken out and has been getting fiercer and fiercer.

Other fresh milk brands have got angry when TH True Milk, in its marketing campaign, emphasized that its milk products are “clean products.” They said that with the emphasis on the safety of the dairy products, TH True Milk implies that non-TH True Milk products are not clean and unsafe to consumers.

The war has become more violent when in late July 2011, the Vietnam Dairy Producers’ Association lodged a complaint to the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and relating agencies, complaining about the word “sach” (clean) in the advertisement slogan “Tinh tuy thien nhien duoc giu ven nguyen trong sua tuoi sach cua TH True Milk” (the natural essence has been preserved in the clean fresh milk of TH True Milk).

Trinh Quy Pho, Secretary General of the Dairy Producers’ Association, said that the slogan implies that other dairy products are unclean and unsafe, which has badly influenced the images of other enterprises, led to misunderstanding about the quality of fresh milk.

Meanwhile, director of another dairy company has also expressed his anger about the advertisement slogan launched by TH True Milk. “Does TH True Milk imply that other dairy products all have problems?” he said.

However, the Department of Food Safety and Hygiene answered the dairy producers that there is no factor that may lead to the conclusion that the advertisement contents implies that other products are not clean.

After the answer was released, other dairy producers have no other choice that “swallowing the leek.”

The conclusion by the state management agency was thought to put an end of the war among fresh milk producers. However, the war has broken out again, when the owner of TH True Milk made a statement on local press: “Toi khong co doi thu” (No one can hold a candle to me).

Thai Huong, the owner of TH True Milk, who then faced the violent criticism from the public for her statement, later explained that she has no rival because she follows a specific way.

According to Huong, 92 percent dairy materials are imported from foreign countries (the figure released in 2008). Enterprises import powder milk and then make liquid milk from the powder, which should not be called “fresh milk.”

“I have decided to follow a specific way – making clean fresh milk. I can take pride that I am the pioneer in making clean fresh milk,” Huong stated.

“I do not need to scramble for the market shares from other companies, because I myself can generate a new group of customers,” she added.

The statement has been commented by the Vietnam Dairy Producers’ Association Trinh Quy Pho as “haughty statement”.

Though dairy producers have not voiced their protest against Huong, the comment by the association, which is believed to represent dairy producers, is understood as the common voice of dairy producers.

Vinamilk, a big guy on the dairy product market, in its plan to compete with TH True Milk, decided to install a new production line using the most advanced technology in the world, the first production line of this kind in South East Asia) and launched 100 percent pasteurized Vinamilk fresh milk in mid December 2011.

Thu Uyen