Fonterra to offload iconic brands
Fonterra says the sale of its global consumer business and its Oceania and Sri Lankan operations could take 18 months to complete.
Fonterra is fast tracking $100 million worth of milk plant upgrades in Australia.
The co-op says extra capacity resulting from the upgrade will allow it to process an extra 500 million litres of Australian milk.
Fonterra chief executive Theo Spierings says its Australian business has been transformed – from a return of -8% return on capital a few years ago to 15% ROC.
“Our Australian business is now processing 2 billion litres of milk with a ROC of 11 to 12%,” he told the co-op’s annual meeting in Hawera today.
Fonterra’s Australian plants are running at full capacity, with a waiting list of suppliers.
“We are the largest milk processor in Australia right now,” says Spierings.
He says there have been developments in the Australian dairy industry; Murray Goulburn has been sold to Saputo and the deal needs shareholder approval and regulatory clearances.
Spierings says while other players will be seeking regulatory cleareances, Fonterra will not rest on its laurels.
“I have approved the $100m upgrade to be fast-tracked; $100m allowing us to process another 500m L of milk is a no brainer,” he says.
“We will drive the Australian business as hard as we can,” he says.
Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says the Government is always working to ensure that our food exporters are treated fairly under trade agreements signed with other countries.
Coronet Peak, Queenstown, was the venue for the 2024 NZ Dairy Industry Awards.
AgriZeroNZ, the joint venture (JV) fast-tracking emissions reduction tools for Kiwi farmers, is looking to speed up delivery of a methane vaccine with a $10m investment in US ag-biotech start-up, ArkeaBio.
The Ministry for the Environment (MfE) has found itself in a stoush with NZPork over the controversial National Policy Statement for Highly Productive Land (NPS-HPL).
Fonterra says the sale of its global consumer business and its Oceania and Sri Lankan operations could take 18 months to complete.
The lobby group the Methane Science Accord (MSA) says it welcomes a recent government move to seek outside advice on reducing biological methane targets, rather than relying on recommendations made by the Climate Change Commission.
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