Bega out, Murray Goulburn in for Coles cheese deal

Bega Cheese has lost its contract to supply Coles brand cheese, with the five-year national private label contract awarded to rival Murray Goulburn (MG).

The contract includes the supply of a range of Coles brand cheddar-style cheese including tasty, colby, mild and light cheese in blocks, shreds and slices for Coles supermarkets across Australia and is expected to generate $130 million in additional sales per annum for MG.

MG already holds a 10-year deal to supply Coles private label brands with daily pasteurised milk in Victoria and NSW. That partnership commenced in 2014.

MG has announced plans to invest up to $145 million to significantly increase ‘ready-to-serve’ cheese capacity and capabilities at its new consumer cheese plant in Cobram.

MG Managing Director Gary Helou said: “MG is pursuing a growth and value creation strategy to deliver profitable growth and insulation from the challenges of volatile global dairy commodity prices. As part of this we are ramping up our manufacturing capability and capacity to produce and market a wide range of Australian-made ‘ready-to-consume’ dairy foods for our domestic and international markets.”