SHANGHAI-BASED Bright Dairy & Food Company will increase the price of its pure milk products by about 14 percent after the country's top planning body gave approval.

This is the first price rise approved by the National Development and Reform Commission since it announced price regulations in January to curb inflation.

Shijiazhuang Sanlu Dairy Group in Hebei Province may also increase the price of its dairy products, the NDRC said on its Website yesterday. Sanlu declined to comment.

Milk products accounted for 23 percent of Bright Dairy's total revenue in 2007, and 18 percent of its main business revenue last year, the company said.

The rising costs of materials, including raw milk, have jacked up the cost of production, Bright Dairy said.

The company posted a net profit of 213 million yuan last year, 32.6 percent more than a year earlier, the company told the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The company is aiming to achieve sales revenue of 7.6 billion yuan with profits of 162 million yuan this year. It plans to invest 490 million yuan this year to build milk bases, develop new products and upgrade facilities, previous reports said.

Prices for pure milk products nationwide are relatively low and a small price rise "will not be an issue for ordinary people," said Wang Dingmian, the deputy chairman of Guangdong Dairy Association.

The NDRC began to supervise the prices of oil, milk and instant noodles on January 15.

Manufacturers must report to local governments when they plan a four-percent increase or by more than 10 percent within a month.