(Yicai Global) Sept. 8 -- Guangzhou, the capital of southern China's Guangdong province imported large quantities of Australian pasteurized milk for the first time on Wednesday.

 Some 8,346 liters of pasteurized milk arrived on that day at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport from Tasmania, Australia.

 This batch of fresh milk quickly completed customs clearance formalities. After passing inspection and quarantine, it will be distributed through supermarkets, e-commerce providers, community delivery services and many other channels to Guangzhou consumers, local newspaper Yangcheng Evening News reported.

 Since pasteurized milk has a very short shelf life, the importer of fresh milk is in a race against time from the moment of production. This batch of fresh milk was produced on Sept. 4 and arrived at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport on Sept. 6, said Wang Zimeng, the distributor of the imported milk, told Yangcheng Evening News. it will enter the market in a few hours and will still have 11 days shelf life after market entry. 

 However, the price of Australian milk imported by air is also quite high, Wang said. At present, the milk is priced at USD12 (CNY79) per liter.

 Guangzhou has hitherto had almost no imported fresh milk for sale in its markets. The province's Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau introduced a regulatory policy on imported pasteurized milk In May last year under the new China-Australia Free Trade Agreement laid a foundation for the import of large quantities of fresh milk.