1:34pm Nov 26, 2020. Mengniu Dairy chief executive Jeffrey Minfang Lu said the proposed acquisition would deliver real opportunities for Australian dairy farmers, fruit growers and regional communities. Mengniu said the Lion business procured the equivalent of about 825 million litres of milk per year. 'No red flags': Tick tipped for $600m China drink deal despite push back. PRINT THIS PAGE. By 1897 it was the largest brewery in the North Island if not the country. The sale of Lion Dairy and Drinks is entering the home straight. australian owned Bega Business Featured Bega Cheese has acquired Lion Dairy and Drinks for $534 million, returning iconic brands like Dairy Farmers, Farmers Union, Pura Milk, Big M and Yoplait to Australian ownership. If the Mengniu/Lion deal is approved, as a leading dairy industry analyst predicts, it would close Lion's lengthy bid to sell its dairy and drinks business, first announced last year. 75,000 tonnes of fruit from orchards across the country. Every year we purchase around one billion litres of milk from over 550 Australian dairy farmers, and crush approx. The issue here is the increasing concentration of control of Australia's leading brands ... in the hands of a single country where all business enterprises have obligations to the central government," Mr Wilkie said. Lion, which has been on the market for more than 12 months, also owns a beer business that makes Little Creatures, James Squire and Tooheys. Lion Australia is part of the Lion Group, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kirin Holdings. "It’s a win-win transaction for two leading dairy companies in Australia and China and represents a compelling opportunity for all stakeholders," he said. read more. Dear CCI Member, Lion Dairy & Drinks Business Sale Update . By Kim Berry | 26 November 2020 Bega Cheese has announced it will acquire all shares in Lion Dairy & Drinks (LDD) for $560 million. Japanese drinks giant Kirin has finished churning through bids for its up-for-sale local dairy and drinks division. The ACCC will not oppose the proposed acquisition of Lion Dairy & Drinks Pty Ltd (Lion D&D) by China Mengniu Dairy Company Ltd (Mengniu) after closely considering the potential impact on competition. The owner of Farmers Union Iced Coffee and a swag of other key local brands has pulled the plug on a deal that would have seen the Japanese company’s wholly-owned Australian dairy firm Lion Dairy & Drinks sold to a Chinese firm. Lion D&D Customer Service. China’s Mengniu Dairy had offered $600 million to buy Lion Dairy and Drinks but the deal was rejected by the Federal Government and deemed not in the national interest. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission had earlier signed off on San Miguel Corporation's various Australian acquisitions, noting "there is no overlap between San Miguel's different activities in Australia and hence no change likely to t… Lion brands also include Yoplait yoghurt, Vitasoy, Pura and Farmers Union. The news was broke by Japanese news site Nikkei Asia which valued the deal at 40 billion yen (AU$527 million), reporting an official announcement is … Bega Cheese has bought Lion Dairy and Drinks in a $534 million deal that will see it become the new owner of brands such as Farmers Union, Yoplait and Dairy Farmers milk. "This acquisition brings together the best of the East and West, harnessing Mengniu Dairy's networks in existing markets and D&D's leading brands and production capability," he said. Japanese brewer Kirin Holdings has reportedly entered into a deal to sell its Lion Dairy & Drinks subsidiary in Australia to local company Bega Cheese. 25 November 2019: Lion CEO Stuart Irvine today announced that Kirin Holdings and Lion have reached an agreement to sell the Lion Dairy & Drinks business to the China Mengniu Dairy Company Limited (Mengniu Dairy) for AUD $600 million. We use cookies in order to personalise your experience and improve our services. Mengniu, one of the world's biggest dairy companies, will acquire major Australian brands including Big M, Dairy Farmers, Pura, Berri and Daily Juice under the deal. "I've got concerns that they're going to be taking a big chunk of raw milk production and making a product that they're just going to sell into China. ASX-listed dairy company Bega Cheese will purchase Lion Dairy and Drinks from Japan's Kirin for $534 million. More than a year after Lion announced plans to sell its Dairy & Drinks business, a deal has been done with China Mengniu Dairy Company for $600 million. Pura and a range of other big name Australian dairy brands would be sold to China Mengniu Dairy under a $600 million deal. Owners approached the Mengniu Dairy ahead of the sale, they said in a statement Monday. Japanese media reported the Lion Dairy and Drinks acquisition was done days ago, saying the price was more than 40 billion yen ($530 million), and speculation mounted when Bega Cheese went into a trading halt pending a capital raising. The stories have included claims that a Chinese espionage ring attempted to install an agent for Beijing in a seat in Federal Parliament. You can now click/tap LISTEN to start the live stream. The Me… That deal wrapped up last month. Lion Dairy & Drinks We produce, market and distribute some of Australia’s most iconic brands in milk, dairy beverages, yoghurt, juice and soy. Co-operative chairman and Gympie dairy farmer, Andrew Burnett said the iconic Dairy Farmers brand is now back in Australian ownership. You can now click/tap WATCH to start the live stream. "It (Lion) is foreign-owned already, so there's every chance they'll get (FIRB) approval," he said. A SECOND iconic Western Australian dairy name, Masters, is about to get a Chinese owner. Order products and manage your account online. “We haven’t been in that fresh dairy section so now that we’re in fresh dairy it doubles the size of the company, we’ll be a company that now has revenue of over $3 billion, $2.5 billion of which will be in Australia and $500 million overseas,”, “We’re a true scale food company now, it’s very exciting,”. The purchase was confirmed on Thursday, with the net cost totalling $534 million. Canadian dairy conglomerate Saputo and financial firm Tanarra Capital were also bidders until recently. That's just going to take supply off the market," Senator Whish-Wilson said. 1800 000 570 customersalesandservice@lionco.com. "It's hard to see them (ACCC) having any issue just because it's not a consolidation of retail shelf space or milk collection, or anything like that ... there's no red flags," he said. "There's no end in sight to the fire sale of Australian and Australian-based companies to the Chinese. The new company was managed by Arthur Myers, Ehrenfried's nephew. The purchase will be completed by the end of January 2021. Japanese beverage titan Kirin has owned the business, which was previously called National Foods, since 2007 but has been looking for a … Than Saputo and Fonterra, which sells big M, Dairy Farmers Dare... 16 per cent stake in Mengniu, which sells big M, Dairy Farmers, and approx. Minimum pricing for its up-for-sale local Dairy and Drinks operates 11 Australian manufacturing facilites and has another two with partners... 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