[Distribution Hot People] "Half of Newborns Delivered by Cesarean Section, Formula Milk Boosting Immunity Gains Popularity"

Park Gyuhak Lotte Food Pasteur CM Team Leader

'Withmom Sanyang 100il Jewang'
Development and Application of Probiotic Coating Technology
Health-Enhanced Infant Formula, Sold-Out Frenzy

Kyu-Hak Park, Team Leader of Pasteur CM at Lotte Foods.

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] As birth rates decline, the formula milk industry is fiercely competing over the premium market. One of the most notable products is Lotte Foods Pasteur’s ‘Withmom San-yang 100 Days C-section.’ Developed with the insight that the rate of cesarean sections increases as the age of mothers rises, this product is the first in Korea to contain ingredients necessary for babies born via cesarean section, gaining popularity.

On the 19th, Park Gyuhak, team leader of Lotte Foods Pasteur CM (Product Development Marketing), explained, “Although Korea’s birth rate is the lowest in the world, the rate of cesarean deliveries is among the highest. Noting that one out of every two newborns is born via cesarean section, we developed this product while researching infant health.”

The ‘Pasteur Breast Milk Research Institute’ within Lotte Central Research Institute began studying infants born via cesarean section based on research results from the American Medical Association Journal and disease research institutes. These studies showed that babies born by cesarean section have an 80% higher rate of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections and are more prone to obesity, diabetes, and allergies compared to those born naturally. The research found that infants born via cesarean section have abnormally low levels of the probiotic bacterium Bifidobacterium longum, which accounts for 70-80% of the human immune system.

Park said, “The core of the research was to include live Bifidobacterium longum in the formula. After many nights of work, researchers at the central laboratory developed a ‘probiotic coating’ technology that allows the probiotics to survive at room temperature, which was applied to ‘Withmom 100 Days C-section.’”

This product has recorded an average monthly sales growth rate of 29% over the past four months. Some distribution channels even experienced sell-out crises. Lotte Foods expects sales of 5 billion KRW this year.

Park shared, “A mother who wanted a natural birth but had to undergo a cesarean section due to difficult circumstances wrote that she felt great comfort seeing her baby become comfortable after using our product, despite being upset about the baby’s illness. Our goal is for 15% of babies born via cesarean section to consume our product by the end of this year.”

Park analyzed that in the increasingly competitive formula milk market due to declining birth rates, the product’s competitiveness depends on how much it can enhance the baby’s immunity and digestive absorption.

He forecasted, “In Korea, cesarean deliveries are expected to reach about 60% in five years. The average age of first-time mothers will rise above the current 35 years, inevitably increasing interest in infant health.” He added, “As Lotte Foods has read the times and gained love by creating Korea’s first probiotic formula and anti-rotavirus formula, we will now target the market with formulas focused on immunity and digestive absorption.”