What is driving the growth in global casein demand and where is it headed?

What is driving the growth in global casein demand and where is it headed?
Global casein demand is expanding at roughly 8% annually, with current international consumption estimated at 400,000 to 500,000 tonnes per year. Supply has not kept pace, leaving a market gap. The largest importers are Japan and the United States, followed by European countries such as France, Germany, and Poland. China's per capita consumption remains low, partly due to different dietary habits, but domestic industrial usage across food, pharmaceutical, leather, textile, and paper sectors is estimated at 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes annually. The main producing countries, New Zealand, Australia, Russia, and Ukraine, dominate with fresh-milk-based rennet and acid casein, which are higher quality than China's qula-based output. As global food processing and protein fortification trends strengthen, demand is expected to keep rising, especially in Asia.