New Fonterra CEO clearly understands cooperatives

14 July 2011

The New Zealand Cooperatives Association is very pleased to hear of the appointment of Theo Spierings as the new CEO of Fonterra.

Cooperatives Association chairperson Chris Knowles said:

"The new CEO of Fonterra clearly understands cooperatives. I am very happy the appointment is a long-term cooperator who will clearly understand the tensions of farmer ownership and member funding."

* With an aggregate turnover/revenue of more than $30bn, New Zealand's cooperatives and mutuals are responsible for around 15% of the country's GDP

* Some of New Zealand's best known businesses are cooperatives and mutuals, including Fonterra Cooperative Group, Foodstuffs (Pak'n'Save, New World, Four Square), Alliance Group, Silver Fern Farms, Mitre 10, Paper Plus, Ravensdown Fertiliser Cooperative, Ballance Agri-Nutrients, Southern Cross, the Automobile Association and Interflora

* The world's 300 largest cooperatives and mutuals, six of which are here in New Zealand, have an aggregate turnover/revenue of US$1.1 trillion, the size of the world's 10th largest economy

* According to the International Labour Organisation, cooperatives provide more than 100 million jobs, more than all the world's multinational corporations combined.

ENDS

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