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Bega says shrinking pool of cows to keep milk prices high

Simon Evans

Key Points

  • Bega Cheese is doing a review of dairy processing factories including plants at Koroit and Tatura in Victoria.
  • Executive chairman Barry Irvin says there’s a ‘disconnect’ between milk prices in Australia and international dairy commodity prices.
  • The company has done a $115m sale and leaseback deal on its Vegemite factory at Port Melbourne, with property group Charter Hall.
  • Bega says there’s been a 9 per cent reduction in total raw milk supply in Australia over the past two years.

The executive chairman of Bega Cheese, which owns the Dairy Farmers, Big M and Farmers Union milk brands along with Vegemite, says labour shortages on dairy farms are contributing to rising milk prices for households.

Barry Irvin said there had been a 9 per cent drop in the volume of milk being produced by dairy farmers in Australia in the past two years, a reduction of 700 million litres.

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Simon Evans writes on business specialising in retail, manufacturing, beverages, mining and M&A. He is based in Adelaide. Connect with Simon on Twitter. Email Simon at simon.evans@afr.com

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    Original URL: https://www.afr.com/companies/retail/bega-says-shrinking-pool-of-cows-to-keep-milk-prices-high-20230627-p5djrm