Fonterra considers ‘optimal use’ for site

Fonterra plans to close its Tuamarina plant in April next year, affecting two jobs.

The Marlborough site is a transfer plant where tankers transfer milk to other tankers to continue their journeys.

‘‘Our intention is to move Tuamarina activities to the Brightwater site (near Nelson) as under-utilisation, ongoing environmental requirements and corresponding capital spend mean keeping it is no longer feasible,’’ a Fonterra spokesperson said.

‘‘The site was not used last year and we are working through the finer details of what the move will look like; unfortunately two roles will be impacted.’’

Fonterra said it was working through the ‘‘optimal use of this asset’’ when it closed. The fully automated milk concentration plant at Tuamarina opened in 2005, with the installation of Australasia’s first reverse osmosis equipment by Tetra Pak New Zealand. The concentration technology worked by filtering the milk, rather like straining tea.

Fonterra also plans to stop making milk powder at its Brightwater plant near Nelson in April, affecting 28 jobs. The company would shift milk processing from the small ageing plant at Brightwater to its bigger Darfield site near Christchurch, Fonterra chief operating officer Fraser Whineray said. Milk collection and associated activities would continue at Brightwater as Fonterra moved its milk transfer activities there from Tuamarina, he said.

‘‘We know milk supply is declining over time, flat at best, so we need to make sure we are getting the most out of every drop of milk and optimising our plants to match both consumer demand and available milk supply,’’ Whineray said.

Fonterra was reshaping its business as a period of rapid expansion in the dairy herd came to an end.