HLM -Chapter 1121 Independent Company

The result of the dry weather was a distorted development across the entire industry.

Leonard said, based on the information they had gathered, New Zealand was encouraging ranchers to process milk further, producing items like milk powder, butter, and cheese.

“Right now, there’s a very strong demand for full-cream milk powder. You probably don’t know, but the current final auction price for full-cream milk powder is $3,317 per ton, an increase of 19.8%.”

“Skimmed milk powder has risen 16.5% to $2,829 per ton; butter has increased 14 percentage points to $5,146 per ton; and the rise in dehydrated milk fat is even more extreme, up 22.6%, quoted at $6,146 per ton.”

Wang Bo looked at him in surprise. Leonard smiled wryly: “What, you don’t believe me?”

Wang Bo shook his head: “No, it’s just… I’m amazed you remembered all these numbers. That’s incredible.”

Leonard laughed: “It’s nothing. Memorize it a few times, and it sticks. Besides, these numbers are about our livelihood, closely tied to money. How could I forget them?”

Wang Bo said, “If these processed products are increasing in price even faster, isn’t that a good thing?”

Leonard smiled bitterly: “It’s a vicious cycle, Wang. This isn’t a normal price increase. Crazy price hikes lead other countries to increase milk production, which disrupts the market and makes price trends unpredictable. Then how are ranchers supposed to study and anticipate the market?”

Ranchers in New Zealand were capitalists, each worth over a million. Raising dairy cows was like an investment—the breed, number, and scale were all based on analysis.

No matter the situation in the broader industry, Sunset Town had finally begun producing milk.

In fact, the ranch had been producing milk for over three years. After starting dairy cattle breeding, milk could be produced quickly, but at that time it wasn’t yet on a large scale.

Now, the scale had grown, and the ranch could produce 20,000 liters of milk per day.

Two days after milk production began, Cousins handed Wang Bo a report, containing the ranch’s production data and analysis.

According to the data, the ranch currently had 400 dairy cows in their lactation period, primarily Holsteins. Buffalo and yak numbers were small, so their milk output was minimal.

Among the Holsteins, cows in peak lactation could produce 60–80 kilograms of milk per day, with a few reaching 100 kilograms—a staggering number!

For comparison, even a normal Holstein in peak lactation produces only about 50 kilograms per day, which is already considered a lot.

At Sunset Ranch, many cows could produce over 100 kilograms, essentially doubling the usual output.

However, Cousins and others were already used to it. The ranch’s livestock was far superior in meat quality and milk production compared to ordinary animals elsewhere; otherwise, Middle Eastern tycoons wouldn’t covet their breeds.

Wang Bo’s ranch had a very large number of dairy cows. A newly developed branch ranch was entirely for dairy cows, with a potential capacity of 100,000 heads.

Currently, production wasn’t that high. The production lines Wang Bo invested in were still limited, and a portion of the dairy cow resources hadn’t yet been utilized.

Looking at the statistics, Wang Bo called over Juan and asked, “Right now, the ranch produces 20,000 liters of milk per day. How much can the town consume?”

Milk had already started being sold, but due to scale limitations, most of it was consumed within the town.

Town residents subscribed to milk at internal prices. Wang Bo ensured that each household received at least two liters per day.

Juan said, “I’ve had someone calculate this. The town consumes around 2,500 liters daily. Twenty thousand liters is too much. We need to sell externally.”

Previously, when selling externally, milk prices were higher. When he had purchased large numbers of dairy cows last year, he had built pasteurization lines so milk could be sterilized and bottled.

Outside, a 1.3-liter bottle of milk sold for 80 yuan; internally, it was 10 yuan—an eightfold difference.

New Zealand was a major milk-producing country, so ordinary domestic milk was cheap. A 1.3-liter bottle in a supermarket cost only five or six yuan.

Of course, some bottles sold for just one or two yuan—these either had issues with shelf life or nutritional content, which explained the low price.

Wang Bo called Anderson over. Previously, the ranch’s milk couldn’t be fully consumed by the town, so Wang Bo had long sold it externally via the department store.

The external price matched the internal one—10 yuan for 1.3 liters—but each person was limited to five bottles.

He didn’t make money from selling milk externally; he used it to drive foot traffic into Sunset Town.

Most bottled milk was sold at the department store. Almost every vehicle passing through Highway 8 bought a few bottles.

80 yuan was expensive, 10 yuan completely acceptable.

Sunset Town’s agricultural and livestock products were well-known outside the town. As the saying goes, “Good wine needs no bush.” Sunset Town produced quality wine, with multiple effective channels promoting it to the middle class, so its reputation had long been established.

Even though 80-yuan milk was pricey, people still bought it.

Wang Bo asked Anderson, “How’s milk selling now?”

Anderson nodded: “Very well. Previously, demand exceeded supply. Milk and meat have always been signature products in the store.”

Hearing this, Wang Bo relaxed. He said, “Starting tomorrow, increase milk sales. Lift the restrictions—each person can buy ten bottles.”

This was a necessary measure. When they had sold meat before, there were no limits, and many people resold it after buying from the store.

It seemed equally profitable, but the difference was huge. Wang Bo didn’t care about this small profit; he wanted foot traffic. He wanted vehicles on Highway 8 to stop in town.

Additional consumption was where the real profit came from. Once cars stopped, especially when people entered the store, it was impossible not to spend money.

With a town population of less than 5,000 and a single highway, the department store had already expanded into a massive two-story building covering over 10,000 square meters.

After some thought, Wang Bo said, “Juan, set up a milk subsidiary. Under it, establish a raw milk division, yogurt division, and dairy products division. The ranch’s milk can operate independently.”

Juan said, “Operate independently? There’s already a ranch subsidiary. Wouldn’t unified management be better?”

Wang Bo shook his head: “No, independently. Once milk is produced at full capacity, the output will be terrifying!”