A single canned ingredient imported from the Netherlands has quietly fueled Hong Kong’s daily hustle for the past 85 years, evolving from a simple dairy product into the soul of local diner culture.

The Black and White brand of full-cream evaporated milk has been a crucial element in Hong Kong-style milk tea culture and craftsmanship, giving this popular drink in the city’s cha chaan teng—local cafes—its signature fragrance, thickness, and smoothness.

“Everything starts from a cup of Hong Kong-style milk tea,” said Jayden Looi Ji-houng, consumer dairy commercial director at FrieslandCampina Hong Kong. FrieslandCampina’s parent company in the Netherlands created the Black and White brand exclusively for the Hong Kong market in the 1940s.

Looi added, “Our vision is to position Black and White as the ‘true taste of Hong Kong experience’ and to play the role of promoting food culture in a wider range instead of just milk tea,” noting the product’s essential role in making other local favorites such as red bean ice, egg tarts, and baked buns.

The distinctive white-and-red cans, featuring an illustration of a Dutch Friesian cow, are a ubiquitous sight stacked at local diners, symbolizing a cross-continental identity described by Looi as “owned by the Dutch, born in Hong Kong.”