DFMC is pleased with the news that, after being for sale for more than a year, Lion Dairy & Drinks has entered a sale agreement the China Mengniu Dairy Company Limited (Mengniu Dairy).

Mengniu Dairy has a track record of investing in Australian dairy, with the majority ownership of Burra Foods and the recent proposed acquisition of Bellamy’s Organic. Mengniu Dairy is among the world’s top 10 dairy companies and is ideally positioned to drive the Dairy & Drinks business forward.

“Mengniu have huge scale so their ability to invest in the business is great,” said DFMC Executive Officer Mark Kebbell, as quoted in Farm Online this month.

“To have a dairy owner has got to be a good thing – to that end, we’re relatively excited,” he said.

The sale will include all the white milk, Milk Based Beverages (MBB), yoghurt, juice and water ice brands, including Lion’s blockbuster brands – Dairy Farmers, Dare, Pura, Masters, Farmers Union, Yoplait, Berri, Daily Juice, The Juice Brothers and Zooper Dooper.

It also includes Lion Dairy & Drinks’ 11 dairy and juice manufacturing sites in Australia, the Dairy & Drinks International business, Lion’s share of the joint ventures Vitasoy Australia products (Vitasoy) and Capitol Chilled Foods Australia (CCFA), its majority shareholding in Made by Cow and the Dairy & Drinks’ licensing agreement for the Yoplait brand in Australia and South-East Asia.

Lion CEO Stuart Irvine said that access to leading-edge research and development capability will be of benefit to the Dairy & Drinks business.

“The full divestment of Dairy & Drinks will ensure that it has an owner that is well placed to grow the business over the long term, while also accelerating Lion’s pivot to becoming a leading global adult drinks business,” Mr Irvine said.

“We are very confident that today’s announcement best positions both Lion and the Dairy & Drinks business to move forward and reach their full potential in the years ahead.”

There is no change to your current milk supply contract as a result of this announcement.