Milk Link

Milk Link Ltd
Co-operative (Private Limited with share capital 04427868)
Industry Dairy
Predecessor Milk Marque (indirectly)
Founded April 30, 2000 (2000-04-30)
Headquarters 3120 Great Western Court, Hunts Ground Road, Stoke Gifford, Bristol, BS34 8HP
Area served
 UK
Key people
 Neil Kennedy
Chief Executive
Products Milk, cheese
Revenue £586 million (2010/11)
Profit £15.1 million[1]
Owner British Farmers Community
Divisions Milk Link, Cheese
Milk Link, Milk
Website Milk Link

Milk Link is a large dairy company in the United Kingdom. It is the UK's largest dairy cooperative and the UK's largest producer of cheese. In 2012 the company merged with Arla Foods.

History

It was formed in April 2000 as one of three successor co-operatives to Milk Marque. Milk Marque was broken up after the Competition Commission queried how it set milk prices.

In July 2002, the company bought the Crediton and Kirkcudbright creameries from Express Dairies for £33.1 million, which both make UHT milk. It also bought out the 50% of joint-venture partner Express Dairies in the creamery at Frome.

In February 2004 it set up The Cheese Company with Kilkenny-based Glanbia, which had four cheese processing sites producing product for frozen pizzas, in which it took a 75% stake. In December 2006 it bought out Glanbia for £47.2 million.

In July 2005 it closed a site at Sible Hedingham.[2]

From October 2007[3] to February 2008[4] there were talks to merge with First Milk.

In August 2011 it split into two divisions of Milk Link, Cheese and Milk Link, Milk.[5]

In September 2011 it announced that it would increase the size of the Lockerbie creamery by 50% to produce 37,000 tonnes of cheese a year, into a UK market which consumes 600,000 tonnes of cheese a year.

In 2012 the company merged with Arla Foods.

Products

Each year it handles around 1.5 billion litres of milk.

It makes the chocolate-flavoured milk under licence for the Mars and Galaxy brand.

Cheeses

It exports cheese to 19 countries.

Taw Valley Creamery at North Tawton

Structure

Creameries

See also

Lockerbie Creamery, formerly owned by The Cheese Company before 2007

References

  1. ↑ Telegraph May 2011
  2. ↑ Essex site July 2005
  3. ↑ Merger October 2007
  4. ↑ Merger February 2008
  5. ↑ Food Manufacture August 2011
  6. ↑ Taw Valley Creamery

Video clips

News items

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