Open Country Dairy

What Open Country Dairy does

Open Country Dairy is a privately held, 100% New Zealand-owned dairy processor founded in 2001 and headquartered in Auckland. The company sources raw milk from over 1,200 farmer suppliers across New Zealand, who deliver to a manufacturing network that, prior to recent M&A activity, comprised six processing sites and includes dedicated facilities at Horotiu, Waharoa, Mokai, Whanganui, Gore, and Awarua. Open Country is the country's second largest milk processor and the world's second largest exporter of whole milk powder, supplying over 440,000 tonnes of dairy products annually to customers in more than 60 markets worldwide. Its processing technology stack includes state-of-the-art evaporation and spray-drying across eight powder dryers, cold membrane concentration for a 55%-solids frozen milk concentrate, a 13-megawatt electrode boiler for renewable steam generation at Awarua, and the M2X digital platform for real-time tanker route optimisation across the transport fleet.

The company's product portfolio spans the full dairy ingredient spectrum: whole milk powders (including instant, UHT, and high-heat-stable grades), skim milk powder, whey protein concentrate (34% and 80% protein), frozen milk concentrate, anhydrous milk fat, butter (salted and unsalted), and a cheese range (Cheddar, Mozzarella, Colby, Gouda). Consumer-facing brands include Deep South ice cream (since 1978), Motueka Creamery premium ice cream, and Awarua Organics certified organic milk powders (since 2018, including organic A2 variants). All plants operate under FSSC 22000, HACCP, ISO 17025, Halal, Kosher, and NZ Grass Fed certifications.

Open Country operates a B2B ingredients model with an enterprise field-sales go-to-market, selling directly to global food and beverage manufacturers across confectionery, bakery, nutritional, beverage, UHT, and recombined-dairy applications. Pricing is contract-based and quote-driven for bulk ingredients, complemented by revenue from custom specification development, private-label supply (notably into Asian markets), and ice cream contract manufacturing. In 2025 the company acquired Mataura Valley Milk from a2 Milk for approximately NZD 300 million and acquired Miraka, while commissioning a new 40,000 metric-tonne butter plant to extend into higher-value dairy fat products for Asian bulk and private-label clients.

Name

Open Country Dairy

Legal name

Open Country Dairy Limited

Website

https://opencountry.co.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Open Country Dairy is New Zealand's second largest milk processor and the world's second largest exporter of whole milk powder, supplying over 440,000 tonnes of dairy ingredients annually to global food and beverage manufacturers across 60+ markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Dairy Ingredients Manufacturing

NAICS

Dairy Product Manufacturing (3115), Dry, Condensed, and Evaporated Dairy Product Manufacturing (311514), Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Manufacturing (311520), Dairy Product (except Dried or Canned) Merchant Wholesalers (424430)

SIC

Dairy Products (2020), Ice Cream & Frozen Desserts (2024), Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Dairy Ingredients (Whey, Lactose, Milk Powders) Wholesale (AFAIAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Dairy Spreads, Dips & Cream Cheese Manufacturing (AFAKAKAL), Ice Cream & Frozen Dairy Wholesale (AFAIAEAF), Dairy-Based Beverage Wholesale (Milk Drinks, Yogurt Drinks) (AFAIAGAG)

Keywords

• Dairy ingredients manufacturing
• Milk powder processing
• Dairy ingredient exports
• Cheese manufacturing
• Butter and milkfat production

Headquarters

HQ city

Auckland

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Dairy Ingredients Sales: Open Country generates revenue through the sale of dairy products and ingredients to global food and beverage manufacturers. The company operates eight powder dryers, two cheese plants, butter, ice cream and FMC plants across New Zealand, producing over 350,000 tonnes of powdered milk products, 45,000 tonnes of cheese and 20,000 tonnes of butter annually. Revenue comes from bulk commodity ingredients as well as custom specification products and private label arrangements.
2. Retail Brand Products: Sale of consumer-facing retail products including Awarua Organics (organic powdered milk), Deep South ice cream, and Motueka Creamery ice cream through retail channels.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Open Country Dairy processes high-quality New Zealand raw milk sourced from over 1,200 farmer suppliers into premium dairy ingredients and consumer products, including whole milk powders, skim milk powders, instant milk powders, whey protein concentrate, frozen milk concentrate, anhydrous milk fat, butter, and a range of cheeses (cheddar, mozzarella, colby, gouda). The company supplies these ingredients to global food and beverage manufacturers across more than 60 markets, with annual export volumes exceeding 440,000 tonnes. It also operates consumer-facing retail brands including Deep South and Motueka Creamery ice creams and Awarua Organics certified organic milk powders, alongside a digital customer portal (Open Country Hub) and contract manufacturing services.

Product overview

Open Country Dairy operates as New Zealand's second largest milk processor and world's second largest exporter of whole milk powder, offering a diversified portfolio of dairy ingredients and consumer products. The core offering includes milk powders (Whole Milk Powder, Skim Milk Powder, Instant Whole Milk Powder), milk proteins (Whey Protein Concentrate 34% and 80%), milk concentrates (Frozen Milk Concentrate-55 at 55% solids), milk fats (Butter and Anhydrous Milk Fat), and artisan cheeses (Cheddar, Mozzarella, Colby, Gouda). Consumer-facing brands include Deep South and Motueka Creamery ice creams, and AwaRua Organics certified organic milk powders. The portfolio is supported by digital platforms (Open Country Hub customer portal) and services (Custom Specifications and Contract Manufacturing) enabling customer-specific product development and private-label solutions. Production capacity spans over 350,000 tonnes of powdered milk products, 45,000 tonnes of cheese, and 20,000 tonnes of butter annually across eight processing sites.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Awarua Organics: Organic powdered milk products launched in 2018 after a two-year conversion process of Southland farms and the Awarua processing plant to certified organic. Since 2021, includes products made from organic A2 protein milk. Sold in New Zealand, Australia, and China.
• Deep South
• Motueka Creamery

Products and services

• Whole Milk Powder

Quantifiable outcome

• Reduced emissions by over 70% through renewable energy initiatives including electrode boiler and transition from coal to wood pellets
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• NestlécoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2023Open Country and Nestlé are partnering in a tree planting project to help farmers offset greenhouse gas emissions by planting native trees on dairy farms. For every native tree an Open Country farmer plants, Nestlé funds a second tree. The five-year programme aims to plant up to 310,000 trees, helping farmers turn unproductive dairy land into environmental assets while supporting Nestlé's goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.
• M2XcoreTechnology or IntegrationM2X is a digital real-time transport management platform that Open Country uses for transport planning, dispatch, and driver optimization. The platform optimizes tanker routes, reduces travelling distances, and provides real-time communication capabilities. M2X was launched at Awarua and Wanganui sites and expanded to Waharoa.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Westland Milk Products: Westland is a New Zealand dairy processor producing milk powders, butter, cheese and specialty ingredients for export, now owned by Yili. It competes directly with Open Country for farmer supply and global B2B customers across WMP, SMP and dairy fats.
• Synlait Milk: Synlait is a New Zealand-based dairy processor producing milk powders, specialty ingredients, and nutritional formulations for global F&B and infant formula customers. It directly competes with Open Country in B2B dairy ingredients and shares the NZ farmer supply base.
• The a2 Milk Company: a2 Milk is a New Zealand-based dairy nutrition company specializing in A2 protein products. Open Country processes A2 milk at dedicated facilities and supplies a2 Milk, while also competing for A2 ingredient customers globally — and recently acquired Mataura Valley Milk from a2 Milk.

Broad incumbents

• Arla Foods: Arla Foods is a European dairy cooperative producing milk powders, butter, cheese and milk-based ingredients for global B2B customers. It is a meaningful competitor to Open Country in whole milk powder, butter and AMF export markets.
• Dairy Farmers of America: DFA is the largest US dairy cooperative, producing milk, cheese, butter, powders and ingredients. While primarily US-focused, it competes with Open Country in cross-border dairy ingredient supply to global B2B customers.
• FrieslandCampina: FrieslandCampina is a Dutch dairy cooperative producing milk powders, cheese, butter and dairy-based ingredients for B2B customers worldwide. It directly competes with Open Country in WMP, SMP and specialty dairy proteins for food and nutritional manufacturers.
• Fonterra Co-operative Group: Fonterra is the world's largest dairy exporter and New Zealand's dominant milk processor. It is Open Country's primary domestic competitor for farmer milk supply and global ingredients customers, producing WMP, SMP, cheese, butter and specialty ingredients.
• Lactalis: Lactalis is the world's largest dairy company, with extensive cheese, butter, milk powder and ingredient operations globally. It competes with Open Country in cheese, butter, AMF and dairy ingredient exports to Asian and Middle Eastern markets.
• Glanbia plc: Glanbia is an Irish-headquartered global nutrition and dairy ingredients group producing cheese, whey proteins and nutritional ingredients. It competes with Open Country in whey protein concentrate, milk proteins and B2B nutritional dairy ingredients.

Emerging players

• Hilmar Cheese Company: Hilmar Cheese is a US-based manufacturer of cheese and whey protein ingredients serving global food manufacturers. It competes with Open Country's whey protein concentrate and cheese segments, particularly for export to Asian ingredient markets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/OpenCountryNZ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/open-country-dairy

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Open Country Dairy