Is the ice block in milk tea the new battleground for dairy companies?

Ask AI · Why did Sanyuan Co., Ltd. choose Bingboke as a strategic breakthrough?

Can the “deep processing” gamble of an established dairy company win?

You may not be familiar with Bingboke, but you’ve definitely heard of popular tea drinks like Youlan Latte, Bingboke Thick Milk Bubble, Jiuxun Jasmine Cloud Top Tea… these leading tea beverage brands’ “star players.”

Behind their smooth and rich taste, there’s a refrigerated purified milk—Bingboke.

Now, this business has also caught the eye of an old local dairy company.

Recently, Sanyuan Co., Ltd. announced that it will jointly acquire some shares of Shanghai Biru Food Co., Ltd. (hereinafter “Biru Food”) with related party Qingshan Ruxing Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership), and will inject cash into it. In this transaction, Sanyuan plans to invest 104 million yuan, and after completion, will hold 42% of Biru Food’s shares. Sanyuan will become Biru Food’s second-largest shareholder, just behind founder Li Jiankang.

Biru Food mainly engages in the research, production, and sales of dairy products, with main products including “Bingboke,” “butter milk,” etc., and supplies many chain coffee and tea brands.

With Sanyuan’s substantial investment, Biru Food’s future development may face a turning point. This “old dairy company + benchmark supplier in a niche segment” alliance will stir what kind of ripples in the already turbulent deep processing dairy track?

1. Focused business, ample cash, Sanyuan’s big strategic move

Regarding this deal, Sanyuan stated that “it aligns with the company’s strategic plan and is conducive to further resource integration and strengthening the catering business.”

Looking at Sanyuan’s recent operational moves, investing in Biru Food is also part of adjusting its business structure.

From 2016 to 2021, Sanyuan acquired 90% of Ailai Faxi (later fully acquired in 2024); partnered with Fosun to acquire France’s St Hubert, entering the plant-based spread business; and also acquired Shou Nong Animal Husbandry, entering the livestock industry.

But starting in 2022, Sanyuan gradually divested non-core assets, including ceasing to consolidate the French St Hubert SPV Luxembourg’s accounts, and transferring its stake in Shou Nong Animal Husbandry.

While focusing on core businesses, Sanyuan’s management team has also been refreshed. In June 2025, Sanyuan announced the appointment of 41-year-old Chen Haifeng as general manager, replacing 57-year-old Tang Hong.

Public information shows that the new leader has held senior positions at Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, Feihe, and JD.com, with backgrounds in consumer goods, e-commerce, and dairy. After taking office, Chen Haifeng clarified Sanyuan’s reform approach: focus on Beijing, deepen low-temperature products.

△Image source: Sanyuan official website

Investing in Biru Food is also Chen Haifeng’s first acquisition after taking office, reflecting strategic carefulness.

After all, among Sanyuan’s business segments, the highest gross margin is in ice cream, at 31.05% (disclosed financial data for 2024), and ice cream is one of Bingboke’s key application scenarios. Biru Food’s main product, Bingboke, as a refrigerated purified milk, also falls into the category of low-temperature milk.

More enticing is that Biru Food has opened channels in tea and coffee B2B markets. Public info shows Biru Food supplies brands like CoCo Tea, Cha Ba Dao, Yulian Tea House, Nayuki, and Chayan Yue Se. With Biru Food’s channels, Sanyuan can expand the application scenarios of its existing low-temperature fresh milk and cheese products, boosting B2B business.

Objectively, Sanyuan’s cash reserves are also very stable, enabling it to seek potential growth points. Tianyancha shows Sanyuan holds 50% of Beijing McDonald’s Food Co., Ltd., with an investment return of 234 million yuan in 2024—more than four times its net profit that year.

With clear strategy, focused business, and ample cash, Sanyuan has laid a key move.

2. Bingboke as a benchmark, what’s the story?

In fact, this isn’t Biru Food’s first time attracting capital attention.

Tianyancha info shows Biru Food was founded in 2014, a dairy company jointly established by Chinese and Czech expert teams, which quickly became a leader in China’s Bingboke segment thanks to technological advantages.

In 2018 and 2020, Biru Food received investments from Boyun Capital and Challenger Capital, the latter founded by Tang Binsen, founder of Genki Forest. Snow River Food, Wufuo Venture Capital, and Yuan Yi Investment also appeared on the shareholder list.

This period of capital influx coincided with rapid integration of Bingboke products into China’s tea beverage market.

Bingboke can be simply understood as “purified milk,” with higher protein and calcium content than regular milk, less water content, and naturally sweet flavor from lactose. In milk tea production, adding Bingboke can reduce syrup use, lower calorie content, and enhance creaminess and a salty-sweet cheese-like flavor.

△Image source: TuChong Creative

For the Chinese market, “membrane filtration purified milk” isn’t new. Fairlife, a milk brand once expected by Coca-Cola and Mengniu, failed to win over consumers due to high prices and limited products, and eventually exited.

While Biru Food is called the “Chinese version of Fairlife,” it avoids the retail liquid milk battle by collaborating with boutique cafes and tea brands, gradually cultivating market taste, and avoiding head-on competition with Mengniu, Yili, and others.

But Biru Food isn’t satisfied with this.

Red Restaurant Supply Chain Guide noted that at the end of last year, Biru Food changed its business scope to include “food production; dairy product manufacturing; beverage manufacturing.” It also registered related trademarks like “Birur Alpha” (convenience foods), “Kama” (foods), “Nai Fu Coffee” (catering and accommodation), “Birur Befood” (food and advertising sales).

According to product images provided by official customer service on April 1, Biru Food’s “Bingboke Purified Milk” is entrusted to Inner Mongolia Shenniu Yunhai Dairy Co., Ltd. and Shandong Junjun Cheese Co., Ltd. Self-media “Finance Doodle” reported in 2021 that the OEM enterprise is Ningxia Saisang Dairy Co., Ltd. This indicates Biru Food needs stable OEM dairy companies, and as sales and product categories expand, this demand gap becomes more prominent.

△Image source: Taobao Bingboke flagship store

Sanyuan can fill this gap. Financial reports show Sanyuan has two industrial parks in Beijing and Hebei, with actual processing capacity of 714.3k tons in 2024, and offers differentiated milk sources like A2, melatonin, and organic milk, supporting Biru Food’s capacity needs.

3. The next windfall in the dairy industry

The optimistic outlook for deep-processed dairy products represented by Bingboke is not only Sanyuan’s individual choice but also a signal of the industry’s next phase of development.

In recent years, affected by sluggish consumption, dairy products as basic consumer goods are experiencing a painful adjustment after rapid expansion.

△Image source: Shetu Wang

The most typical manifestation is the widespread “powder spraying,” where high-pressure spray dries raw milk into milk base powder. “In the past, powder spraying was a stopgap during the off-season after Spring Festival, but now it’s a daily routine during peak season,” said Song Huiting, chairman of Jiangsu Jiahui Pasture, to media “Vertical and Horizontal Dairy.”

Besides powder spraying, the number of large-scale farms has sharply decreased, and “culling cows to cut losses” has frequently made headlines in recent years.

Because cheap raw milk is abundant.

According to “Dairy Economy Observation,” China’s upstream dairy industry has reached the top five globally, with milk prices and costs at historically low levels. This means domestic market competition often results in “no one making money.”

Contrasting with the low prices of liquid milk, deep-processed dairy products are growing rapidly, and reliance on imports remains high.

Especially cheese, butter, and cream widely used in B2B applications, which have achieved fast growth. The Red Restaurant Industry Research Institute estimates that China’s baking, Western fast food, coffee, and tea industries will maintain CAGR of 3.9%, 8.5%, 22.6%, and 10.5% respectively from 2020 to 2025. Cheese, butter, cream, and Bingboke are essential products in these sectors and represent new growth opportunities for dairy companies.

△Image source: Shetu Wang

Leading dairy giants like Yili, Mengniu, and Bright Food have also launched cheese, cream, and membrane separation protein lines, shifting from “powdered” raw milk to high-margin products like butter, Masu, and whey powder.

Mengniu’s 1-billion-yuan deep-processing project (“Milk Cube”) launched in January this year now covers dairy fats, cheese, and milk proteins, turning Inner Mongolia’s high-quality milk into high-end products like lactoferrin and original cheese.

Yili’s mozzarella cheese line also started production in March, with an annual capacity of 10k tons, mainly in 3kg packages for B2B catering, with plans for customized packaging based on customer needs.

Earlier, in June last year, Feihe Dairy partnered with the established bakery listed company Ligo Food to jointly establish Helil (Inner Mongolia) Dairy, utilizing Feihe’s by-products of milk fat in Ligo’s raw materials, achieving supply chain synergy.

With more diverse product forms and richer application scenarios, dairy giants are trying to open new growth points. Sanyuan’s investment in Biru Food is just a microcosm of this wave.

This article is original from Red Restaurant Supply Chain Guide, author: Chun Ying; editor: Jing Xue