Co-op members of Lakeland Dairies have backed major new changes in the structure of the Cavan-headquartered cooperative.
In a Special General Meeting (SGM) of Lakeland Dairies today (Wednesday, April 28) members approved changes to the co-op’s governance structure, including a reduction in the number of elected board members of the co-operative.
At the time of the merger of Lakeland Dairies and LacPatrick Dairies in 2019, it was agreed to review the rules of the new merged society once the merger was completed.
The merger received the resounding approval of the members of both co-operatives at that time.
The board of the new Lakeland Dairies Co-operative Society went on to establish a Governance Sub-Committee to carry out a review of shareholder representation and governance arrangements in the new Society. This was chaired independently by Teddy Cashman, with six members of the current board.
SHARING OPTIONS:
Elections will instead be held on a phased basis for the reduced board membership will be held on a phased basis.
Members of the Lakeland Dairies Co-operative Society have voted to cut the number of board members from 22 to 13.
At a special general meeting (SGM) on Wednesday, members voted for the current 19 electoral areas to be replaced with 13 new electoral areas, based on milk supplier members. Each area will have one board member.
There are eight electoral areas in the Republic of Ireland and five in Northern Ireland.
“Following from the merger in 2019, the current board has 22 elected members and this will now be reduced to 13 (one per electoral area) by November this year, with the option to also co-opt up to three directors,” a Lakeland Dairies spokesperson said.
Level 2 apprentice Robbie Thompson from Pritchitts Lakeland Dairies
Northern Ireland agri-food business Lakeland Dairies is celebrating the benefits of helping students complete their training during this year’s Apprenticeship Week.
Northern Ireland Apprenticeship Week runs from
April 26 to May 2, 2021, and celebrates the broad range of apprenticeships available in the region, as well as the contribution apprenticeships make to people, businesses, communities and the economy.
‘Learning the skills as well as the theory’
One local business, Lakeland Dairies’ Pritchitts site in Newtownards, is helping future-proof its skills needs through Level 2 Apprenticeships in Food Industry Skills in conjunction with the College of Agriculture Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE).
Lakeland Dairies corporate office in Cavan town.
More butter and powder sales drove turnover and improved profits in the second-largest milk processor on the Island of Ireland.
Lakeland Dairies, headquartered in Cavan with key milk factories in Bailieborough and Artigarvan, saw operating margins improve, profit margins increase, and debt reduce as the benefits of consolidation with LacPatrick Dairies seem to be kicking in already.
Lakeland Dairies Co-op is now the second-largest co-op in Ireland. It has 3,200 suppliers with the milk pool split between 55% in Northern Ireland and 45% in the Republic.
On 1 April 2019, the merger with LacPatrick officially started. This significantly increased the Lakeland presence in Northern Ireland and brought more processing plants to handle a growing milk pool. Total milk supplies were up 3% last year to reach 1.9bn litres. The all-important EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) rose by €7.6m to €50.5m. T
Lakeland Dairies office in Cavan town\ Philip Doyle
Northern Ireland’s largest milk processor, Lakeland Dairies, continues to consolidate following the LacPatrick merger, with operating profits for the year to 26 December 2020 up 27% to a new record high of £23.48m.
Turnover was also at a new high, increasing 5.7% to end the year at £985m. Operating profit margin has widened out from 2% in 2019 to 2.4% in 2020.