The sale of a farmer-owned flour mill in Washdyke, South Canterbury, requires approval from the Commerce Commission to proceed.
George Weston Foods, operating as Mauri New Zealand, sent a request to the Commerce Commission to acquire the wheat milling and storage facilities, including the land, currently owned by Farmers Mill.
The mill, founded in 2013, is owned by Grainstor, the largest grain storage facility in the South Island. It stands as New Zealand’s only flour producer that is independently owned and operated by growers.
Farmers Mill provides bulk and bagged flour to industrial food manufacturers, bakeries, and select retailers.
The purchase price was not disclosed, and the sale is contingent upon conditions such as obtaining regulatory approval from the commission.
A Commerce Commission spokesperson said ComCom can approve a proposed merger only if it is confident that the merger is unlikely to reduce competition in the market.
Mauri New Zealand runs flour mills in Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. It supplies bulk flour to industrial food manufacturers and bagged flour to wholesalers, bakeries, and supermarkets.
George Weston Foods’ bakery division also used Mauri flour in making breads under Tip Top bread and Big Ben pies.
Mauri and Farmers Mill each produce broll, a wheat milling by-product mainly utilised as an ingredient in animal feed.