Bega Cheese confirmed last week that it had completed its acquisition of the Lion Dairy & Drinks business.
The completion of the acquisition marks the official return of a number of Aussie brands to Aussie ownership, including Dairy Farmers, Dare, Pura, Farmers Union, Masters, Big M, Daily Juice, The Juice Brothers and Berri.
Commenting on the completion of the acquisition, Bega Cheese Executive Chairman Barry Irvin says “we are delighted to return these iconic brands to Australian hands. This is a great moment for Bega, and we couldn’t be more excited for such treasured brands to officially join the Bega family”.
Bega is excited about its future, with its operations growing from eight manufacturing sites across three states to 20 manufacturing sites (plus a joint venture) across six states and one territory (NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, ACT and Western Australia).
“Bega has been working hard to create a great Australian food company, and in addition to acquiring such great brands, we look forward to welcoming a large and talented team into our business,” says Mr Irwin.
Bega says it’s “extremely proud” of the dairy and grocery business that it is building, which includes “household favourites” such as Vegemite, Bega Peanut Butter, Simply Nuts and its honey range, B honey.
“We hope that Australians are as thrilled as we are that much-loved state-based brands that they’ve grown up with, such as Masters (WA), Farmers Union Iced Coffee (SA) and Big M (Victoria) are again Aussie-owned – these great brands are returning to Aussie ownership for the first time in more than a decade,” says Mr Irwin.
Following the acquisition, Bega’s product range now includes fresh milk, flavoured milk, yoghurt, juice, cream and custard alongside its traditional dairy and grocery business. The brands acquired by Bega include:
- Milk based beverages (Dare, Farmers Union, Big M, Masters, Dairy Farmers and Canberra Milk).
- Yoghurt (Yoplait, Farmers Union, Dairy Farmers and The Culture Co).
- Juices (Daily Juice, The Juice Brothers, Mildura, Prima and Berri).
- Cream and custard (Pura and Dairy Farmers).
- White milk (Pura, Dairy Farmers, Masters, The Complete Dairy and Canberra Milk).