Fonterra takes milk off competition but market share continues to slip

Synlait recruited 11 new farms in the South Island. (Image: Synlait)

Fri, 03 Oct 2025

Fonterra Co-operative Group says it picked up more milk from its competitors than it lost last dairy season.But the dairy giant’s share of New Zealand’s milk pool continued to drop.The co-op collects more than three-quarters of the country’s milk at the farmgate, but it faces fierce competition from a number of independent processors, such as Open Country Dairy (OCD).Given its share, several independents, including Synlait Milk and Westland Milk Products, guarantee to pay their farmer suppliers Fonterra’s milk price with...

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