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The decisions made by farmer shareholders over the past decade have laid a strong, durable foundation for Fonterra's future growth and profitability, says the co-op's outgoing chairman Henry van der Heyden.
In his final chairman's address in Hamilton today, van der Heyden said when he took the job on, he wanted to make a difference and leave the cooperative in a better position at the end of his tenure.
Taking stock of the changes within the industry over the past 10 -15 years, van der Heyden reflected on the important decisions that had strengthened Fonterra's global position and returns to farmers.
"It's been one huge year after another and every one of them has made us stronger," he says.
"Together we've turned a collection of co-ops into the world's top dairy exporter.
"Creating Fonterra was a massive leap of faith on two levels. We put our faith in a single integrated model – and we put our faith in it succeeding in an entirely deregulated market. I can say without a shadow of a doubt that we pulled it off," he said.
"Fonterra came out of the blocks with $11.8 billion in assets. We have grown that by 28% to $15 billion. That's an outstanding performance.
"We have done what we set out to do – grow farmers' wealth ¬– and that's come through in the value of your land, your shares and your earnings on the farm."
Van der Heyden says global demand for dairy was the strongest it had ever been and is growing.
"We need to use all of our muscle to push ahead and stay ahead. But we will do it our way. History has shown we are not afraid to make the big calls and make big changes without trading what is really important."
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