Wyeth takes over at Westland

Wyeth, the former Miraka chief executive, is looking forward to bringing the strength of a global dairy giant to the opportunities that lie ahead for the West Coast dairy processor. Westland is owned by China’s Yili Group.

Wyeth took over from Shiqing Jian, who was interim chief executive following the resignation of Toni Brendish in August last year.

“We hope Richard is as excited as we are about the opportunities that lie ahead for Westland as he takes stewardship of this iconic New Zealand company,’’ Jian said.

Wyeth said Westland holds a unique place within the New Zealand dairy landscape and now, with the backing of Yili, the company was uniquely placed to leverage the advantages of its strong dairy heritage and culture.

“It is a great honour to be entrusted as the custodian of this iconic New Zealand company. I am especially aware of the important role Westland plays, not only within the New Zealand dairy industry, but also as part of the West Coast and Canterbury communities.

“Yili is an enormously innovative company dedicated to quality and serving the consumer above everything else. Being part of that naturally brings huge advantages for Westland.

“There has never been a more exciting time for the dairy industry in New Zealand and I look forward to embracing all the challenges, opportunities and responsibilities that brings in my new role.’’