Guangzhou China Oct. 26, 2010 - The US totally exported 1,229 tonnes xylitol with USD2,189,093 to China in the first eight months of 2010, while the amount was zero in the same period of last year. Many insiders guess the reason for China importing so much xylitol from the US is China having been the world's largest xylitol producer and exporter in recent years. CCM offers some analysis on this issue.
Firstly, xylitol from the US with price advantage over Chinese xylitol thanks to its low production cost of xylitol by adopting fermentation technology and using starch as raw materials. According to the data from China Customs, the average price of crystallized xylitol from the US is about USD1,781/t in the first eight months of 2010, but the average domestic price of Chinese crystallized xylitol is USD3,200/t.
Secondly, maybe Chinese importers of xylitol from the US are also the exporters in the US, who just purchase the xylitol produced by themselves in the US. According to the data from China Customs, all xylitol from the US in the first eight months of 2010 go to Kunshan City and Jiangsu Province, where the world's largest functional ingredients supplier Danisco locates food ingredient factory, and Danisco also has xylitol production plant in the US.
Actually, many insiders don't believe that it is necessary for China to import xylitol from the US, as the US is always the largest export destination of Chinese xylitol. According to the data from China Customs, the US totally imported 4,604 tonnes xylitol in 2009 and 3,043 tonnes xylitol in the first eight months of 2010, both accounting for 28% of total xylitol import volume from China respectively during these two periods.
Meanwhile, Chinese xylitol capacity has been excessive in recent years. According to the data from the Report of Production and Market of Xylitol in China from CCM, the operating rate of Chinese xylitol was 42% in 2008 and 40% in 2009 respectively. Although it is estimated to increase into some extent in 2010, it won't surpass 70%.
Source: CCM International