WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND — Mauri New Zealand, a division of George Weston Foods Ltd., is seeking to acquire the wheat milling and storage assets of Farmers Mill Ltd.
The New Zealand Commerce Commission announced June 12 that it had received a clearance application from George Weston Foods to pursue the acquisition.
Farmers Mill and Mauri mill wheat into flour and supply this flour to customers across New Zealand.
Mauri operates flour mills in Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. Mauri supplies flour in bulk to large users of flour such as industrial food manufacturers and bagged flour to wholesalers, bakeries, and supermarkets.
Mauri’s flour is also used by the George Weston Foods’ Bakery division to produce breads and bakery goods under such brands as Tip Top and Big Ben. In addition to flour, Mauri also supplies broll, a byproduct of the wheat milling process used as an input for certain types of animal feed.
George Weston Foods, a wholly owned subsidiary of Associated British Foods Plc., is one of the largest food manufacturers in Australia and New Zealand.
Grower-owned Farmers Mill is an independent operator with a flour mill in Timaru and, like Mauri, supplies bulk and bagged flour to industrial food manufacturers, bakeries, and some retailers. The majority of the wheat that it mills comes from its owners. Farmers Mill also supplies broll for animal feed.
The Commission administers a voluntary clearance regime for mergers and acquisitions but can also take enforcement action to prevent anti-competitive transactions from going ahead if prior clearance is not sought.
A statement of preliminary issues with a draft investigation timeline will be published on the Commission’s website within five working days. The Commission has 40 working days to make its decision unless the Commission and the applicant agree to an extension.
“We will only give clearance to a proposed merger if we are satisfied the merger is unlikely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market,” the Commission said.
