Thursday, 15 October 2020 10:21

Cullinane departs milk business

Written by  Sudesh Kissun
Peter Cullinane. Peter Cullinane.

The founder of boutique milk company Lewis Road Creamery is leaving the business.

Peter Cullinane, who launched the company in July 2012, has sold his stake to Southern Pastures, which now owns 100% of the company.

Southern Pastures, which operates 20 dairy farms in Waikato and Canterbury, bought a cornerstone stake in Lewis Road Creamery three years ago and progressively increased its stake.

Cullinane says it’s been an incredible journey that started with a simple idea at his kitchen table.

“And now to see the brand mature safely in the hands of investors who are farmers of such integrity and quality is a fantastic conclusion,” he says.

Lewis Road Creamery’s product range includes premium butter, yoghurt, ice cream and flavoured milk.

Southern Pastures chairman Prem Maan says Cullinane has created an amazing brand.

“We're proud to take on the responsibility of building on it to produce the best premium dairy products New Zealand has to offer," says Maan.

“We're convinced that farming can be a powerful tool for environmental good in addition to providing economic returns.

 “We have a long-term vision to produce carbon-neutral dairy in New Zealand and we see Lewis Road Creamery as part of that grass-to-glass journey.” 

Southern Pastures produces milk under a stringent independently certified 10 Star Certified Values Program which stipulates grass-fed, free-range, climate-change mitigation, human welfare, animal welfare, GMO-free, palm products free, growth hormones free, antibiotic stewardship, and environmental sustainability requirements. 

Premium milk produced under the Southern Pastures 10 Star program is currently used in Lewis Road Creamery’s grass-fed butter sold in Whole Foods and other stores across the US and Woolworths stores throughout Australia.

 

More like this

Rocky Road milk is here

Speciality milk producer Lewis Road Creamery is celebrating its 10th anniversary of iconic chocolate milk with a new flavour.

Love for choc milk still strong

Premium dairy brand Lewis Road Creamery is celebrating a decade since the country went crazy for its iconic fresh chocolate milk.

Cream of the crop

One of New Zealand's largest dairy farmers won the 2024 'Food, Beverage and Fibre Producer' award at the NZ Primary Industries Awards.

Opinion divided

OPINION: Boutique milk company Lewis Road Creamery’s latest offering to mark Matariki is unfairly facing heat from certain quarters of Māoridom, who are opposed to any commercialisation of all things Māori.

Featured

Bridge Pā Table Grape Harvest Starts Weeks Early

Budou are being picked now in Bridge Pā, the most intense and exciting time of the year for the Greencollar team – and the harvest of the finest eating grapes is weeks earlier than expected.

Farmlands Posts Strong 2025 Half-Year Growth

Rural retailer Farmlands has released it's latest round of half-year results, labeling it as evidence that its five-year strategy is delivering on financial performance and better value for members.

Editorial: Trump's Tirade

OPINION: "We are back to where we were a year ago," according to a leading banking analyst in the UK, referring to US president Donald Trump's latest imposition of a global 10% tariff on all exports into the US.

National

Machinery & Products

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

FTA and Uber Drivers

OPINION: Expect the Indian free trade deal to feature strongly in the election campaign.

Ice Cream Deal

OPINION: One of the world's largest ice cream makers, Nestlé, is going cold on the viability of making the dessert.

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter