The receivership is limited to the shareholding in AZC, while the day-to-day operations remain unaffected.
CEO Natalie Sarich-Dayton said Brownes core business remained strong.
“Brownes is an incredible Australian success story,” Natalie said.
“Our annual revenue jumped 10 per cent over the last year and we are ramping up exports into new markets including Singapore, Malaysia and the United Kingdom.
“Our dedicated team continues to operate with the same commitment to producing high-quality dairy products using milk sourced from our trusted local farmers in the south-west region of Western Australia.”
The receivership, initiated by China Mengniu Dairy Company, is specifically limited to the Australian shareholder level and will not impact Brownes commitment to producing high-quality dairy products using local milk.
McGrathNicol partner and receiver Keith Crawford said they were engaging with key stakeholders to begin an orderly sale process.
“As our appointment is limited to the holding company only, we do not anticipate any impact on day-to-day operations,” he said.
Brownes will continue to operate with the same commitment to producing high-quality dairy products from milk sourced from farmers in the south-west region of Western Australia.
“Customers can continue to find their favourite Brownes Dairy milk, yoghurt, cream, and other products on supermarket shelves as usual.
“Our relationships with our local farmers and suppliers remain strong, and our focus on delivering fresh, delicious dairy to Western Australian families is unwavering.
“We are confident in the continued success of our business and appreciate the ongoing support of our community,” Natalie said.
In 2024, Brownes revenue increased from $244 million to $268.7 million, fuelled by expansion into new markets including Singapore, Malaysia and the UK and the launch of their cold brew coffee product Hunt and Brew.
“We launched our cold brew coffee product Hunt And Brew into the UK through a distribution deal with Britain’s largest grocer Tesco and we also expanded throughout Asia with a number of partnerships including 7-Eleven,” Natalie said.
After several notable losses in recent years, Brownes Dairy has now stabilised its business
“Looking ahead, we are confident in our ability to maintain our positive momentum and further strengthen our position in the market,” she said.
“We will continue to focus on sustainable growth and delivering long-term value.”
The company remains committed to expanding its footprint into new export markets, as it seeks to capitalise on current momentum and demand for Western Australian dairy products overseas.
Farmers Dairy Council president Ian Noakes told ABC reporters Georgia Hargreaves and Chela Williams back in April a state-based buyer would be ideal.
"We see it as a very vital part of the West Australian dairy industry and would definitely not like anything untoward to happen to it,” Ian said.
“There’s a lot of dairy processors around Australia [that] have gone out of business in the last couple of years, so you wouldn't think finding a buyer would necessarily be that easy, although I think Brownes appears to be trading reasonably okay, so that might help.”
Brownes Dairy is Australia’s oldest dairy company.
It was established by Edward Browne and his small milking herd back in 1886.
Operating out of a main site in Balcatta with a second site in Brunswick, the company collects about 150 million litres of milk annually from around 50 dairy farms in the south-west of the state.
Brownes has a diverse portfolio of dairy including milk, cream, yoghurt, flavoured milk, juice and desserts.
It was named one Australia’s most innovative companies as part of the Financial Review’s 2019 BOSS annual awards (the only dairy company to make the list).
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