Philip Wescombe, who leads the innovation center, said the move provides the opportunity to collaborate with dairy experts in nutrition in New Zealand as well as Australia and beyond.

"We get to identify leaders in the field who are really pushing the boundaries," he said.

"There's also a good feeling from developing knowledge that's good for the whole industry, including consumers."

Outcomes of the memorandum include the development of bacteriophage control systems and new ingredient patents, with world-leading research also conducted on the bioavailable amino acid composition of human breast milk, in collaboration with top Chinese and New Zealand scientists, Wescombe added.

The Yili Innovation Centre Oceania has since been involved in breakthrough research that has had major global health implications, such as work on sustainable farming practices, as well as becoming a hub for research collaboration across Oceania by using Lincoln University as a base and positioning it as a key player in regional dairy innovation.

Christine Jasoni, a professor and dean of the faculty of agriculture and life sciences at Lincoln University, said the university's research "finds solutions which are going to be developing products that people want to buy, but in a sustainable way".