Dubbed Night Milk it contains higher melatonin levels.
"Melatonin plays a key role in helping humans regulate day-night cycles, and by selectively collecting milk produced by cows during the night we can create a 100% natural sleep aid," says SM research manager Simon Causer.
"Having determined the feasibility of production and that the change of routine has little effect on the behaviour of the cows, the next step in the process will involve carrying out a clinical trial to demonstrate efficacy of the product when taken by a study group comprising patients with insomnia."
SM general manager for market and product development, Tony McKenna, says products such as Night Milk command a substantial premium over conventional milk powders, and offers a means of capturing additional value for Synlait Milk and its suppliers.
"We have identified a significant market for such products in Asia and Europe, with key consumers likely to be professional people, the elderly and international travellers, all of whom can experience a high incidence of sleep disorders... [and] because much of the value is created on farm, our milk suppliers for this product will share in the premium, just like our colostrum suppliers do."
McKenna told Dairy News what premium Night Milk suppliers will earn is "in discussion and yet to be finalised. It is also commercially sensitive."
Baby and infant products are a possible future development as they are also an obvious demographic for such a product, however such markets are "sensitive and strictly regulated," he notes.
"We need to work through more of a detailed process with key customers in this area."
Rather than patents to protect the concept, McKenna says the IP (intellectual property) is "in the how we do it".
"Our facility is set-up to allow us to do special things on the farm and then to keep these milks segregated through manufacture...
"Special milks produced on farm are central to our strategy for the very reason it takes advantage of the great farm-processor-customer supply chain we operate with."
As for whether a concentrated formula is planned, to avoid the potential pitfall of Night Milk users getting to sleep well, only to wake up needing the loo an hour or two later, McKenna told Dairy News "we are working on a number of product options and applications".
Product trials will involve patients drinking a glass of Synlait Night Milk 30 minutes prior to going to bed, with various measures of sleep quality taken during the course of the night to demonstrate the effectiveness of the product compared with conventional milk.
The Night Milk programme is part of a suite of initiatives Synlait Milk is working on to develop its nutritional products business, a cornerstone of which has been the opening of a $100million infant nutritional plant in November 2011.
Bright Dairy & Food, China's third-biggest dairy company by volume, bought a 51% stake in Synlait Milk in July 2010.
Last year Synlait Milk commissioned a second drier and packaging plant at its Dunsandel site allowing it to produce high value milk powders including infant formula for the Chinese market where Bright Dairy has an extensive distribution network.
