Federated Farmers Waikato vice-president Andrew McGiven said the mistake would be another blow to cash-strapped farmers.
It is understood that the procedure error happened at Fonterra’s Crawford St plant in Hamilton and may mean some products will have to be destroyed.
The site collects a third of all Fonterra’s ingredients in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty, distributing 33,000 containers of milk powder and cheese every year, Fonterra’s website says.
NZ Distribution Centres general manager Deena Clarkson said in a statement: «We’ve identified and corrected a temporary variance in our cool-chain procedures at Crawford St».
«This meant some of our products may have been temporarily stored at incorrect temperatures.
«Stringent quality control is always our primary focus, so as a precaution we have put a hold on potentially affected product leaving the cool store while we check and confirm quality requirements.»
«Product that meets those requirements is continuing through our supply chain. Any that doesn’t meet these requirements is on hold for further testing, and we are arranging for replacement products as needed. That process is still underway.»
A Fonterra spokeswoman said value of the affected product would not be known until the checking process was completed, «but at this point most product is continuing through as usual».
Federated Farmers Waikato vice-president Andrew McGiven said it was disappointing that Fonterra’s procedures had let them down again.
«We are doing the hard yards here with the low payout, and this is just going to pull away from any sort of profitability we may have had.
«It’s still going to cost someone money and more than likely its going to be the shareholders at our end.»
McGiven said it was disappointing that shareholders had not been informed about the issue.
On Tuesday that Fonterra chief operating officer Jacqueline Chow told farmers at the DairyNZ Farmers Forum at Mystery Creek, that the cooperative was: «trying to listen more, front the issues, declare when we make mistakes and I think that’s the only way. It’s about rebuilding trust and doing it together».
McGiven said that a «heads up» from Fonterra about the procedure error would have been nice.
«What I think they need to do is lift their game in terms of shareholders around various things.
«Their communication on various things has been substandard recently.
«I still think they can do a much better job.»
Source: Stuff
