BEIJING — China has been making steady progress in invigorating its dairy industry, which is expected to unleash more growth potential, an agricultural official said on Nov 13.

Fresh milk output rose 5.2 percent year-on-year during the January-September period as the country's dairy production restored growth, Wang Junxun, an official with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, told a press conference.

Dairy production rose 8.8 percent over the same period, said Wang, citing data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

The sector reported faster transformation and upgrades, with the average output of dairy cows nationwide reaching 7.8 tonnes, an increase of 400 kilograms over the same period of last year.

In 2018, sales of liquid milk in China increased by 7.1 percent over the previous year, taking up a bigger market share.

According to Wang, there is still huge growth potential in the Chinese market as the country's per capita consumption of dairy products is only one third of the world average.

By 2025, China's dairy industry should have been "invigorated in an all-around manner," with milk supplies, dairy processing and quality and industrial competitiveness at world-leading levels, according to guidelines unveiled in 2018 to further improve the sector.