Scandinavian dairy co-operative Arla Foods has hinted that UK milk producers could join the company’s cooperative structure.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
Arla, which has several hundred milk suppliers in the UK, has held talks with them on modernising the way the company is run.
An Arla spokesman told just-food that talks took place on Wednesday at the company’s HQ in the Danish city of Aarhus, hours after it had announced a shift in producer payment policies in favour of bigger suppliers.
“Discussions with the English farmers can include the possibility of them being co-owners, independently of the restructuring work that is just beginning,” the spokesman said.
The spokesman added that talks had been planned earlier but had not taken place because of the foot-and-mouth and Bluetongue outbreaks in the UK.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataArla has around 10,000 cooperative members in Denmark and Sweden. Reports in Denmark said Arla’s corporate status and capital structure would be under discussion and could be used as a model for negotiations with suppliers in other countries.
Company chairman Ove Moeberg told Danish newspaper Jyllands Posten newspaper: “If we can get away from the view that everyone is equal in a cooperative, all kinds of possibilities open up.”
The Arla spokesman declined to comment on the reports.
