U.S. dairy product finds a ‘whey’ to China

ARLINGTON, Va. — U.S. dairy has found its “whey” into China with a dairy byproduct that continues to grow in popularity.

Whey is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained in making cheese. Whey protein is the protein content of that liquid whey.

The United States is the world’s leading supplier of high-protein whey, also known as WPC80+.

The United States also is a leading exporter of high-protein whey to China. In 2023, the United States exported around 307,000 metric tons of whey powder to China, with much of that being high-protein whey.

“China is a big export market for the U.S., primarily for their swine production. They are big, big users of whey for feed,” said Jaime Castaneda, executive vice president of policy development and strategy for the National Milk Producers Federation.

When it comes to tariffs, Castaneda said U.S. dairy is no stranger to the concept. U.S. dairy products face steep tariffs against other nations such as Australia and New Zealand for products going to China.

“The retaliatory tariffs that China imposed on U.S. dairy products are still in place and are much, much higher. Right now, the actual tariff is over 32% for U.S. dairy products,” Castaneda said.

But China has a system where, with the help of their Chinese customers, importing countries can apply for and be granted a waiver to reduce those tariff rates.

“We have operated in such a way that every year, we request a waiver for the products we are exporting. So, instead of charging us 32%, they are imposing just 8%,” Castaneda said.

Even with the lower tariff rates, U.S. dairy products still face an uphill battle going into China against countries like New Zealand, whose dairy products have no tariffs going to China.

Castaneda said that from the work that NMPF is doing to make inroads for U.S. dairy products, cheese is one product where he sees the potential for expansion in China.

“I was in China three times last year and what we are doing is trying to work with our friends in China, organizations like the Chamber of Commerce of China, that are close to the Ministry of Commerce, to see if we can lower that 8% tariff to something lower, like 4%, and that would open great opportunities for us,” he said.

Castaneda, describing himself as “an eternal optimist,” said he has real hope that President Donald Trump may be a catalyst to move the needle when it comes to the tariffs that China imposes on U.S. agricultural products.

“As President Trump enters into his second term, I see as an opportunity what others see as a challenge or, perhaps, a threat. I see it as an opportunity for countries to renegotiate better terms with the U.S. That is what I hope is going to happen when it comes to the trade perspective,” he said.

Castaneda said he hopes that actions or even proposed actions on tariffs from the Trump administration will lead to countries like China reconsidering their tariffs on U.S. agricultural products.

“What I suspect and I hope are any actions from the Trump administration in 2025 and the years after will prompt other countries to negotiate with the U.S. and we can actually obtain better terms for the U.S.,” he said.