Tatua trumps Fonterra

The co-op has also retained 54c/kgMS to strengthen its balance sheet. Fonterra last week announced a final payout of $6.40/kgMS, made up of a milk price of $6.08/kgMS and a dividend payout of 32c/share. Fonterra retained 10c/share from its shareholders.

Tatua chairman Steve Allen says the 2011-12 season has been another positive one for it and its 109 suppliers.

"Demand for our products has remained firm throughout the year and our product mix returns were favourable," he says.

Milk supply from Tatua Suppliers was 13.2 million kilograms of milksolids, an increase of 9.5% from the previous year. The company's gearing ratio (of debt divided by debt plus equity) increased in line with expectations to 34%.

However, the co-op says foreign exchange management continues to be a challenge with the New Zealand dollar remaining elevated throughout the year.

"Our foreign exchange hedging policies have mitigated the impact of this to a considerable extent," he says.