Successful entry into new Chinese growth markets

Worms / Troisdorf, April 2016 | It is only three years since Liu Xian established Anhui Excellent Plastic Film Tech Co. Ltd. in the Chinese city of Anqing, Anhui Province. At that time, Mrs. Liu had neither any experience in the production of plastic films nor did she dispose of the necessary equipment. Her target was to become a leading film producer in China. Today, only two years after starting production, the company is on the right track to achieve this target. Anhui Excellent is one of the first producers of high-quality silage stretch film in China.

Instead of choosing a market like food packaging which has great potential, but is already crowded with many good producers, Anhui Excellent opted for a growth market that is still at a very early stage of development in China: Agricultural stretch film. The fact that this product needed a lot of know-how that did not yet exist in China, was no obstacle for the foundress of the company.

Know-how can be acquired, is the opinion of Vice-president Liu Xian. Much more important for success is good market potential, the right decision for a line and cooperation with suppliers who are more than only providers of technology. “It was clear to us that we could only be successful with excellent system technology and a partner who brings us the know-how needed for operation and production of the end products. Crucial factors for our success are the flexibility and reliability of the Reifenhäuser 3-layer blown film extrusion line and the Reifenhäuser team we opted for.“

In addition to Reifenhäuser’s start-up support, Anhui Excellent has taken experts from Australia on board who are already experienced in the production of agricultural film. The investment has paid off: Today, the product range includes agricultural stretch film and packaging film. By now, the company has a leading position in terms of film quality in China  – an important prerequisite for future success in a strongly growing market. In 2014, the production of agricultural film in China rose by 14 percent. Over the next years, the country anticipates a further continuous increase of the production capacities. There should be no lack of consumers: Due to a constantly growing population, China is considered to be the fastest growing market for agricultural film, according to an analysis of Grand View Research.

Farmers can use agricultural stretch film to wrap hay bales. After wrapping, fermentation is triggered which has a positive effect on the nutritive value of the hay. While this technology is widespread in Europe, North America and Australia, it is still in the initial stage of development in China.