meta New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra posts loss on China writedown, CEO to go | The Bullvine

New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra posts loss on China writedown, CEO to go

New Zealand dairy giant Fonterra slumped to a first-half loss Wednesday after massive write-downs on its China business, and announced long-time chief executive Theo Spierings’ departure.

Fonterra posted a net loss of NZ$348 million (S$330 million) for the six months to January 31, down from a NZ$418 million profit in the same period a year earlier.

It blamed the downturn on a NZ$405 million writedown in the value of its stake in Chinese baby food firm Beingmate and costs arising from a 2013 contamination scare.

Fonterra was ordered late last year to pay Danone NZ$183 million in damages over the 2013 incident, when fears of contamination in Fonterra-supplied ingredients forced the French company into global baby formula recalls.

Chairman John Wilson acknowledged shareholders would be “rightfully disappointed” with some of the figures, but pointed to Fonterra’s overall performance.

 

Source: The Business Times

(T1, D1)

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