Saputo buttering up farmers — within limits

THE chief of the Canadian dairy titan set to take over Murray Goulburn Co-operative states point blank that he won’t be giving Australian farmers what they most want — but has no doubt he can win them back.

Saputo chief Lino Saputo Jr, who has spent the past two weeks touring Murray Goulburn’s plants and meeting its suppliers, said farmers had made it clear they wanted to keep the co-operative model intact.

While “that is not going to happen”, Mr Saputo said his company had already shown through its ownership of Warrnambool Cheese and Butter Factory Company that a co-op was not needed to deliver good outcomes for farmers.

“There are ethical players in the industry that can look after the interests of the supplier community as well as if not better than a co-op,” Mr Saputo said.

“I think they (farmers) are looking for loyalty, I think they are looking for good ethics, I think they are looking for transparency and that is what we are all about.”

He said since Saputo’s acquisition of Warrnambool Cheese and Butter, “we have been paying leading prices for dairy, we have been open and transparent and we have very good relationships with our supplier community.

“I don’t think you need to be in a co-op to achieve all of those things.”

But the head of the $17 billion dairy heavyweight has indicated a willingness to address a major gripe among farmers — $1-a-litre milk. Mr Saputo suggested the controversial price point could become a thing of the past, with Saputo to review its contracts with Coles if government regulators approve its $1.3 billion bid to buy Australia’s biggest dairy processor.

He said it was committed to paying market-leading prices for milk supply.