Glanbia hail excellent dairy season
A crowd of around 150 County Wexford farmers attended a meeting on the future plans of Glanbia Ireland at the Horse & Hound Hotel in Ballinaboila recently.
The meeting was one of a series of nine information meetings organised by Glanbia. In attendance were farmer shareholders and suppliers from across the county.
A Glanbia spokesperson said: ‘ The meetings were a forum for farmers to learn more about the Glanbia model, particularly the newly created business called Glanbia Ireland. This business is 60 per cent owned by Glanbia Co-op and 40 per cent by Glanbia plc.’
The Horse and Hound in Ballinaboola hosted a meeting on Monday, January 22, while the Ashdown Hotel in Gorey was the venue for the Wednesday, January 24, meeting. Around 150 Glanbia suppliers attended both venues. Glanbia Co-op was represented at the meetings by Group Managing Director Siobhan Talbot and Group Secretary Michael Horan. Glanbia Ireland chief executive Jim Bergin and Director of Strategy Sean Molloy highlighted the progress made by the new entity since its formation, as well as the ambitious plans for future growth.
Mr Bergin said that Glanbia had recently completed a €35 million investment in the Wexford Cheese plant. He said that it had an excellent season, processing record milk volumes and producing high quality cheddar cheese.
A key take home message for farmers attending the meetings was the new 2018 Trading Bonus Scheme available from Glanbia Co-op. This substantial scheme will reward farmers for their trade with Glanbia Ireland in 2018, paying a year-end bonus in line with the level of farm input purchases from the business. The details of the scheme are available on www. glanbiaconnect.com and will be posted to all Co-op members shortly.
The meetings were told that milk supply to Glanbia Ireland grew by 9 per cent in 2017, with 74 per cent of farmers increasing their milk supply by a weighted average of 12.9 per cent compared to the previous year. Further investment is now planned in order to increase milk processing capacity at Belview in line with farmers’ plans for expansion. In terms of the dairy market outlook, Mr Bergin has cautioned milk suppliers that 2018 is likely to be more challenging than 2017. At the meetings, Jim Bergin has also highlighted the significant investment in expanding the product range available from our Glanbia Connect online store. There are now 5,000 products available from the store, with enhanced features.