« The fusion of FrieslandCampina and of Milcobel will create a forward-looking international organization that will be better able to seize opportunities and more effectively address challenges in the global dairy products », explains the press release of December 18 from the two cooperatives who believe they “complement each other perfectly in terms of market positions and product portfolios”.
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Milcobel is already present in France
FrieslandCampina has 14,634 dairy producers spread across 9,417 dairy farms in The Netherlandsin Germany and in Belgium. In 2023, the company processed 9.4 billion kilograms of its members’ milk and achieved a turnover of 13.1 billion euros.
Milcobel has a production site in the north of France in addition to six sites in Belgium. In 2023, the cooperative which had 1,550 farms and processed 1.3 billion kilograms of milk for a turnover of 1.3 billion euros.
For comparison, Lactalis achieved a turnover of 23 billion euros in 2023 and Sodiaal, of 5.8 billion euros.
Open new markets and improve the price of milk
The objective of this fusion is to offer “new development possibilities in market segments such as cheeses intended for the consumer, the mozzarelladairy products (including milk, buttermilk and yogurt), and ingredientsas well as advantages in terms of efficiency and expertise, for example in the area of sustainability. »
The chairman of the board of directors of the dairy cooperative FrieslandCampina UA, Sybren Attema hopes “get a milk price leading for our dairy farmers members, today and in the future.
The proposed merger must still be approved by the FrieslandCampina members’ council, the extraordinary general meeting of Milcobel, as well as the competition authorities.
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