A major highlight of the conference opening ceremony was the official presentation of the “World Dairy Capital” designation to Hohhot by the International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST). Pan Gang accompanied Hohhot Mayor He Haidong in accepting the plaque and trophy from IUFoST President-Elect Pavinee Chinachoti, who recognized Hohhot’s long-standing contributions to international dairy development and praised enterprise leaders like Yili for advancing scientific innovation in healthy foods.

In his keynote address, Pan emphasized that the dairy sector’s core mission extends beyond supplying basic nutrition to actively improving global public health amidst rapid technological shifts, climate pressures, and supply chain realignments. He argued that true technological innovation cannot be achieved through isolated corporate efforts, but must instead rely on open, international scientific collaboration that integrates research expertise across borders.

Outlining Yili’s strategic vision for a modern dairy ecosystem, Pan focused on digitalization and environmental stewardship. On digital transformation, he called for intelligent technologies to benefit the entire agricultural value chain rather than single enterprises, highlighting Yili’s efforts to build an interconnected digital network linking upstream dairy farmers with downstream distribution partners.