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A consortium comprising Italy’s Parmalat and Australian co-operative, Murray Goulburn, has requested that the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) indicate whether it has any concerns that would need to be overcome prior to its bid to acquire Dairy Farmers being formally assessed by the Co-operative’s Board.
The commencement of the consortium’s regulatory approval process follows similar approaches by Kirin-owned National Foods and New Zealand co-operative, Fonterra.
Dairy Farmers Chief Executive Rob Gordon said further interested parties may initiate regulatory clearance processes in coming months.
“Any bidder that does not have existing dairy operations in Australia would not, however, be expected to seek an ACCC review at this point. Such parties may be required to seek Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) approval during coming months,” Mr Gordon said.
“As previously stated, given the high level of interest in Dairy Farmers, the Board will be methodical in its assessment of available options before it puts a recommendation to its dairy farmer shareholders.”
