Business South March 2021

30 | DAIRY INDUSTRY Westland Milk Products New era for iconic Westland firm T Richard Loader “Yili’s purchase has also provided security and investment to Westland to help us evolve our product mix and upgrade our assets to meet market demands.” A little over 18 months ago Westland Co-operative Dairy Company was pur- chased by Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Company Ltd, (Yili), forming Westland Milk Products (WMP). Also owning Oceania Dairy Limited in Glena- vy, Yili is Asia’s largest dairy producer with the widest range of product lines, and one of the largest globally. Westland’s Chief Operations Officer, Richard Hickson, says the purchase of Westland was part of Yili’s strategic growth plan to be the world’s number one dairy company by 2030. “Yili’s purchase has also provided security and investment to Westland to help us evolve our product mix and upgrade our assets to meet market demands,” says Richard. To understand the significance of dairy farming to the Coast is to understand the importance of Westland Milk Products to the region. The earliest account of dairy farming on the Coast rolls back to 1868. With an ever-increasing number of pioneer- ing dairy farms springing to life, throughout the late 1800 and early 1900’s numerous co-operative dairy/butter factories appeared up and down the Coast — the first of which was the Hokitika Dairy Company. The next major development for the com- pany occurred in 1936 when Westland Dairy Cooperative was established, along with the co-operative eventually taking over all the remaining smaller co-operatives right along the coast. Long and narrow, the milk catchment area encompasses the entire West Coast stretch- ing 440km from Karamea through to glacier country in South Westland, with 375 farms supplying Westland Milk Products and a fur- ther 30 suppliers from Canterbury. T to page 32 Dynes Transport are proud to have been associated with Westland Milk Products for more than thirty years. Dunedin Office: 24 Donald Street, Kaikorai Valley; 03 478 8018 Tapanui Office: Boundary Street; 03 204 8411 www.dynes.co.nz