Wednesday, 14 September 2016 11:28

Fonterra offloads top Oz coffee milk

Written by 
Fonterra has sold Riverina Fresh brand in Australia. Fonterra has sold Riverina Fresh brand in Australia.

Fonterra had offloaded the business claimed to make Australia's best coffee milk.

The co-op has sold its Wagga Wagga plant and Riverina Fresh brand to Blue River Group.

Exclusive negotiations led to the two signing to a sale, subject to conditions but expected to be complete next month.

Fonterra Australia managing director René Dedoncker says the Wagga Wagga business is strong, with its award winning brand Riverina Fresh favoured by baristas but not core to the co-op's strategy in ingredients, consumer and foodservice business.

"Divesting the Wagga Wagga business follows the divestment of non-core assets, including our yoghurt and dairy desserts business, our Bega shares and our stake in Dairy Technical Services; it allows us to focus and put all our energy into our core businesses of ingredients, consumer and foodservice," says Dedoncker.

"Our Australian operations have particular ingredients strengths in cheese, whey and nutritionals, complemented by our consumer and foodservice businesses. These businesses and dairy foods are matched by our manufacturing footprint in Victoria and Tasmania."

All Fonterra's employees in the Wagga Wagga business have received job offers from Blue River Group.

The group's co-chief executive and founder Craig Shapiro says the decision to buy Riverina Fresh reflects the company's ethos of investing in businesses that generate economic returns, and equally achieve positive and measurable social or environmental outcomes.

"The acquisition of the Wagga Wagga dairy business and the Riverina Fresh brand provides Blue River Group with an opportunity to invest in the agricultural sector and the Riverina regional community," Shapiro said.

Riverina Fresh has made dairy products since 1922, gaining a reputation for high quality, award winning milk, sourced from about 20 dairy farms in the Riverina region.

Riverina Fresh milk is reckoned Australia's leading coffee milk, highly regarded by baristas and roasters.

"The business has a dedicated and committed workforce and provides significant regional employment opportunities," says Shapiro. "We look forward to building on the existing strong relationship with the local farming families and distributors who stand behind the Riverina Fresh brand."

Rob Collier will remain chief executive, responsible for the Wagga Wagga business.

"Blue River Group's investment in Riverina Fresh will help a niche brand flourish," says Collier.

More like this

Fonterra sticking to $10/kgMS milk price

Fonterra has reaffirmed a forecast milk price mid-point of $10/kgMS for its farmer shareholders, with just over two months of the 2024-25 season left to run.

Featured

RWNZ applauds hormone patch funding rethink

Rural Women New Zealand (RWNZ) says it welcomes recently announced consultation on Pharmac’s funding of ostradiol patches used by women going through perimenopause and menopause.

East Coast Expo delivers two action-packed days of events

The recent East Coast Farming Expo, held over two days at Wairoa, offered an insight into the current state of agriculture on the east of the North Island, at a time when the locals are remembering the second anniversary of Cyclone Gabrielle.

National

Machinery & Products

Gong for NH dealers

New Holland dealers from around Australia and New Zealand came together last month for the Dealer of the Year Awards,…

A true Kiwi ingenuity

The King Cobra raingun continues to have a huge following in the New Zealand market and is also exported to…

Data crucial to managing water

Watermetrics was formed as a water data collector and currently supplies and services modern technology such as flow meters, soil…

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

King Island rescue

OPINION: Two Australian cheesemakers have rescued the iconic Tasmanian cheese company King Island Dairy.

Baileys vegan flavour

OPINION: World famous liqueur maker Baileys is the latest to dabble with plant-based products.

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter