First Milk, a leading dairy farmer co-operative in the UK, has secured a £120m refinancing deal to fund its expansion into the food sector over the next three years.
The deal was provided by Lloyds TSB Commercial Finance and Barclays, which offered a £130m funding package to the co-operative in 2009, to facilitate its long-term expansion into functional foods sector.
First Milk finance director Ian Forgie was quoted by the BBC as saying that the co-operative received support from Lloyds and Barclays.
"They understand that our drive is all about building an added value food company that can generate a range of income streams at home and abroad, which gives us the ability to pass back better returns to our farmer shareholders," Forgie added.
The latest refinancing follows several deals undertaken by First Milk- in September 2011, it formed a joint venture with New Zealand-based company Fonterra to produce premium whey proteins for use in functional food products for consumers across Europe.
In May 2012, First Milk acquired CNP Professional, a leading sports nutrition business, further expanding its premium functional food sector.
First Milk, based in Glasgow, is involved in milk supply, cheese production and ingredients development, and also supplies retailers with own-label products as well as brands such as Mull of Kintyre and the Lake District Cheese.
