Fonterra Co-operative Group has appointed Elizabeth (Liz) Coutts as chair-elect of Mainland Group, the proposed divestment entity of Fonterra’s global consumer business. This announcement follows the selection of René Dedoncker as CEO-elect and Paul Victor as CFO-elect in February.
The co-op initially announced its plans to divest some or all its global consumer business, including Fonterra Oceania, in May 2024. The company’s revised strategy, released in September after a strategic review confirmed the co-op’s strengths as a B2B dairy nutrition provider, confirmed this was the decided path.
Source: LinkedIn
Over the coming weeks, Fonterra will assess non-binding indicative offers from potential purchasers, as it continues to pursue both a trade sale and initial public offering (IPO) as potential divestment options for its global consumer and associated businesses. The company stated it has recently completed meetings with prospective investors as part of the IPO process.
Coutts is an internationally recognised director and executive, currently chair of ASX and NZX-listed companies EBOS Group and Oceania Healthcare Limited, as well as private telecommunications company 2degrees Group.
In the event of an IPO for Mainland Group, she would be the non-executive chair of the board, presiding over the go-forward growth strategy.
Fonterra chair, Peter McBride, said Coutts has a proven track record of over 20 years as a board director, audit committee chair and board chair across sectors, and the co-op is pleased to have her on board.
“Liz brings extensive governance experience from both large private and public companies, and her leadership will be invaluable should we pursue a public listing for Mainland Group,” said McBride.
“This divestment is firmly grounded in an understanding of how Fonterra best creates value for farmers and New Zealand, both today and for generations to come.
“We are thoroughly testing which divestment option will return the best value to farmer shareholders, while providing an ownership structure that allows our Consumer brands to continue to grow. A divestment remains subject to approval from Fonterra’s farmer shareholders and we will be putting our chosen option to them for a vote in due course,” he said.
Fonterra continues to target a significant capital return to be made to farmer shareholders and unit holders following the divestment, from a strong position after 1H25.
