Feihe Dairy, a domestic leader in infant and toddler formula production, recorded sales of 11.5 billion yuan ($1.69 billion) in 2018, the first domestic maker to reach more than 10 billion yuan in sales, according to the company's executives.

Cai Fangliang, president of Feihe Dairy, said on Jan 24 that the company plans to achieve the target of 15 billion yuan in sales in 2019.

The growth of Feihe is a sign that domestic baby formula milk is recovering. According to Feihe, domestic infant and toddler dairy players captured nearly half of the overall infant and toddler formula market in 2018, up from 31 percent in 2015.

Cai attributed their sales increase to the technology and processing chains that emphasize fresh milk processing. Based in Qiqihar, a city in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, Feihe was among the earliest dairy brands in China.

For Chinese dairy manufacturers, "quality and fresh dairy products are their core competence in their rivalry with international dairy makers," said Leng Youbin, chairman of Feihe Dairy.

Feihe has a close partnership with six exclusive farms, and more than 60,000 cattle producing more than 300,000 metric tons of milk annually. It also has seven processing factories.