NEW ZEALAND – Fonterra Chairman John Wilson today announced an independent review of the Co-operative’s performance at the time of, and following, the manufacture of the affected whey protein concentrate.“Firstly, I need to say how deeply concerned everyone at Fonterra is for the anxiety that has been created by this issue. On behalf of our Board, I apologise to mums, dads and caregivers for any confusion and concern.
“Over the past week, the Fonterra Board has been frequently updated by our management team, and I have kept our Shareholders’ Council and our farmers regularly informed of the unfolding situation.
“I am confident that Theo and his team have made the right decisions and are continuing to do everything they can, as quickly as they can, in what has been a complex issue.
“They have placed public health and safety above all else, made tough calls and put Fonterra’s full weight behind resolving the situation. As a farmer co-operative, this is how we expect our management team to act. We have a set of core values and two of them centre around our co-operative spirit and doing what’s right, and I have been impressed to see these in action over the past week.
Mr Wilson said the Board’s priority has been to support the Fonterra management team in managing the issue, to ensure governments, customers and the public are kept informed.
“The business is now nearing the final stages of getting the issue under control and the focus will soon shift from operations to reviewing exactly what happened.
“There are serious lessons that need to be learnt from this, and that is why, in addition to the operational investigation our Chief Executive has already committed to, the Board will be conducting a comprehensive formal review of its own.â€
TheCattleSite News Desk