Processor commits to port’s Waikato hub
Open Country Dairy is the first anchor tenant in the Ports of Auckland (PoAL) regional freight hub that formally opened on April 30 at Northgate Business Park at Horotiu just north of Hamilton.
Open Country Dairy says its four factories are now running flat out to process milk.
OCD chief executive Steve Koekemoer told suppliers that the new Horotiu factory is already processing near capacity and the Wanganui factory is breaking its production records this season with new farmers that have come aboard.
“Awarua and Waharoa (plants) are nearing peak and fortunately we have had very minimal downtime due to our stringent winter maintenance programmes, he said in OCD’s October newsletter Talk Milk.
“It is that busy time of the year where everyone at Open Country Dairy has their head down and is working as hard as they can to ensure we process every drop of your milk efficiently.”
Koekemoer says OCD’s organic programme is also nearing its first processing date in November after two years of transition on farm and a big upgrade of the factory to process the milk.
“It is an exciting venture for our organics team that is focused on making this a success for the business and our organic farmers in Southland. “We expect our first branded product to be on shelves in early 2019 and are enthusiastic to see this sector grow as we prepare for our launch.”
