Milk Link started trading in April 2000 as one of the three successor co-operatives to Milk Marque. We recognised that fundamental and innovative change was needed to meet the demands of a global marketplace. In 2001 our Members committed to transforming Milk Link into a vertically integrated dairy business in order to create a long term sustainable future for their enterprises.
At the heart of this strategy was the need to invest in existing processing capacity with a skilled workforce, established products and valuable consumer-facing markets.
Today, Milk Link is one of the UK’s largest integrated dairy businesses with a network of eight processing facilities which have the capacity to process around 1.4 billion litres of milk into a wide range of added-value products. This has been the result of our focus on acquiring existing businesses with excellent processing facilities and on developing strong strategic alliances.
Acquisitions, Alliances and Dispersals
June 2009: Milk Link completes its acquisition of Llandyrnog Creamery in Denbighshire, North Wales. Famous for its Cadog brand of Cheddar, the creamery was bought from Dairy Farmers Of Britain.
September 2008: Milk Link completes the sale of its Staplemead Creamery and associated operations to Andros, the French food and dairy products business.
December 2006: Milk Link completes the acquisition of 100% of The Cheese Company, giving the company full control over the direction and earnings of the UK’s largest producer of quality British cheeses.
September 2006: Milk Link completes the sale of its regional fresh liquid milk business to Robert Wiseman Dairies. The sale realised its tangible asset value and enables us to concentrate on building our processing capabilities in key consumer and ingredients market sectors where we can hold a number one or two value share position. The sale also secured a major new milk supply contract to Robert Wiseman’s fresh liquid milk dairy being built in Somerset which will provide us with a profitable and secure outlet for an initial 110 million litres of our Members’ milk per annum over the next three years.
February 2004: Milk Link’s acquisition of a 75 per cent controlling stake in Cheese Company Holdings and the subsequent creation of The Cheese Company makes us a leading producer of British cheese. It confirms Milk Link as the UK’s leading and fastest growing integrated dairy business and secures 620 million litres of additional milk processing capacity for our Members’ milk.
February 2004: Milk Link acquires Peninsula Milk Processors – a regional fresh milk business based in Okehampton, Devon.
December 2003: Milk Link acquires Newlands Farm – a regional fresh milk business based in Pensilva, Cornwall.
October 2003: Milk Link acquires a 20 per cent stake in Westbury Dairies, Wiltshire – a joint venture with First Milk and Dairy Farmers of Britain.
July 2002: Staplemead Dairy Products is established – a 50:50 joint venture with Arla Foods based at Staplemead, which produces a wide range of fresh dairy products for the retail market.
July 2002: Express Dairies’ Ingredients business at Staplemead, Somerset is acquired, providing the opportunity to produce a wide range of high quality and consistent dairy ingredients.
July 2002: Express Dairies’ long life processing business in Crediton, Devon and Kirkcudbright, Scotland are acquired making us the UK’s largest processor of long life milk products.
March 2002: Milk Link acquires Tanner Foods Ltd – a long life milk processing business in Essex (this was subsequently closed in March 2006 with production being moved to Milk Link’s Crediton and Kirkcudbright facilities).
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