Bega Group

{{Infobox company

| name = Bega Group

| logo = Bega Cheese logo.svg

| type = Public company

| traded_as = {{ubl|{{ASX|BGA}}|S&P/ASX 200 component}}

| area_served =

| key_people = Peter Findlay (CEO)

| industry = Dairy, Food processing

| genre =

| products =

| production = {{Unbulleted list|{{decrease}}297,668 tonnes (2020) |303,252 tonnes (2019)}}

| services =

| revenue = {{Unbulleted list|{{increase}}A$3,521.6M (2024)}}

| operating_income = {{Unbulleted list|{{increase}}A$74.3M (2024}}

| net_income = {{Unbulleted list|{{increase}}A$30.5M (2024)}}

| owner =

| num_employees =

| parent =

| divisions =

| subsid = {{plainlist|Bega Dairy & Drinks
Vegemite}}

| footnotes =

| foundation = {{start_date and age|1899|7}}

| founders =

| location_city = Bega, New South Wales

| location_country = Australia

| location =

| caption =

| homepage = {{Official website|https://begagroup.com.au/}}

| dissolved =

}}

The Bega Group is an Australian diversified food and drinks company with manufacturing sites in New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and Victoria. Founded as an agricultural cooperative in the town of Bega, New South Wales by their dairy suppliers, it became a public company in 2011 when it listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. Close to half of shares publicly traded are still held by Bega's farmer-suppliers. It is currently one of the largest companies in the dairy sector in Australia, with a base milk supply in 2018 of approximately 750 million litres per annum.{{cite web |url=https://www.begacheese.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/230402_Bega-Annual-Report-2019-Interactive-v1-SML.pdf |title=Annual report |publisher=www.begacheese.com.au |date=2019 |access-date=9 April 2020 |archive-date=20 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200320054523/https://www.begacheese.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/230402_Bega-Annual-Report-2019-Interactive-v1-SML.pdf |url-status=dead }}

Over half of the Bega Group's revenue (as of 2019) comes from their spreads, dairy consumer packaged goods and other grocery products, with their flagship Bega brand holding 15.7% of the Australian retail cheese market.{{cite web|url=http://www.begacheese.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/00-Bega-Cheese-2016-Annual-Report_interactive.pdf|title=Bega Cheese Limited Annual Report 2016|date=2016|publisher=Bega Cheese Limited|access-date=22 January 2017|archive-date=3 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203230322/http://www.begacheese.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/00-Bega-Cheese-2016-Annual-Report_interactive.pdf|url-status=dead}} The Bega Group's other major consumer and foodservice packaged goods brands are Vegemite, Farmers Table, Zoosh, Picky Picky, Tatura and Dairymont. The Bega branded Australia retail and foodservice cheese products are distributed by Fonterra under a long-term agreement. Just under a third of the Bega Group's revenue (as of 2019) was from exports. The cheese products are exported to 40 countries and distributed across Australia where they are available in most supermarkets and general stores.{{cite web|url=http://www.smh.com.au/business/bega-cheese-goes-from-sleepy-diary-coop-to-1b-business-20160105-glzfo5.html|title=Bega Cheese goes from sleepy dairy co-op to $1b business|work=The Sydney Morning Herald}}{{cite web|url=http://www.fonterra.com/au/en/Our+Products/Our+Brands/Bega+cheese|title=Fonterra – Bega cheese|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160210101439/https://www.fonterra.com/au/en/our+products/our+brands/bega+cheese|archive-date=10 February 2016|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/south-coast/merimbula-and-sapphire-coast/bega/attractions/bega-cheese-heritage-centre|title=Bega Cheese Heritage Centre|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160425083218/http://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/south-coast/merimbula-and-sapphire-coast/bega/attractions/bega-cheese-heritage-centre|work=VisitNSW.com|archive-date=25 April 2016|access-date=5 September 2019|url-status=dead}}

Their other major business segments include bulk core dairy ingredients such as cheese, cream cheese and powdered milk (making up approximately 35% of revenue) and nutritional products produced under the Bega Bionutrients brand (such as lactoferrin and milk protein concentrate),{{Cite news|url=http://begabio.com/about-us/|title=Our story – Bega Bionutrients {{!}} Lactoferrin Supplier|newspaper=Bega Bionutrients {{!}} Lactoferrin Supplier|language=en-US|access-date=22 January 2017}} which make up around 9% of revenue.

History

=Founding and Early Growth (1850s–1996)=

The origins of Bega Cheese go back to the 1850s when dairying began in the Bega Valley.{{cite web|url=https://www.accc.gov.au/system/files/Bega%2520Cheese%2520Limited.pdf |title=Data |publisher=www.accc.gov.au |access-date=9 April 2020}} In 1899 local farmers established the Bega Co-operative Creamery Company. The following year the original Bega Cheese factory was opened. {{cite web |title=Bega Heritage |url=https://bega.net.au/bega-heritage.html |website=Bega Cheese |publisher=Fonterra Australia Pty Ltd |access-date=2025-05-29}} The business remained regional for much of the 20th century, but by 1960 Bega had begun to expand operations, commissioning a milk processing and packaging facility in Fyshwick, ACT to serve broader markets.

=Expansion, Diversification, and Public Listing (1997–2016)=

The late 1990s marked a turning point for Bega Cheese. In 1997, the company constructed a modern cheese processing and packaging facility on Ridge Street in Bega and entered into a joint venture with Dairy Farmers (then known as Australian Co-operative Foods). This venture, (now known as Capitol Chilled Foods), focused on processing and distributing chilled products in the ACT and Southern NSW.

Bega's expansion accelerated in the 2000s. In 2007, it acquired a 70% stake in Tatura Milk Industries, completing full ownership by 2011. Along the way, the company acquired several key assets: De Cicco Industries in the Melbourne suburb of Coburg (2008), Kraft Foods' cheese manufacturing facility in Strathmerton, Victoria (2009), and a new nutritional canning and blending plant in Derrimut, Victoria (2014).

The company was publicly listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in August 2011.

=Transformation through Key Acquisitions (2017–2021)=

From 2017 onwards, Bega changed into a diversified food group. In January 2017 it acquired Mondelez International’s Australian meals business, securing household names like Vegemite, Zoosh, and Bonox, as well as licences for Dairylea and Snackabouts. The deal also included the Port Melbourne manufacturing site and a licence for Kraft-branded cheese and peanut butter. The same year Bega sold its Derrimut infant formula plant and a spray dryer in Tatura to U.S.-based Mead Johnson and acquired the Peanut Company of Australia in Kingaroy, Queensland.

In 2018 Bega acquired the Koroit milk drying and butter processing facility in Victoria from Saputo and closed its Coburg facility in 2019. That year the company launched the Purple Hive Project under its B Honey brand, focusing on honeybee biosecurity.{{Cite web|url=https://campaignbrief.com/bega-launches-the-purple-hive-project-to-protect-australian-bees-via-thinkerbell/|title = Bega launches the 'Purple Hive Project' to protect Australian bees via Thinkerbell|date = 28 July 2020}}

In 2019 the company won a legal dispute with Kraft Heinz over the packaging of its peanut butter.{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-01/bega-defeats-kraft-to-win-long-running-peanut-butter-battle/11061984|title=Bega beats US food giant Kraft in peanut butter packaging battle|last1=Younger|first1=Emma|last2=Reardon|first2=Adriane|date=1 May 2019|website=ABC News|language=en-AU|access-date=30 October 2019}} In 2020, Kraft Heinz appealed the case to the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia, but was dismissed.{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2020-04-14/bega-wins-legal-stoush-against-heinz-over-peanut-butter-label/12146352|title=Bega Cheese wins legal stoush against US food giant Heinz over peanut butter labelling|last=Jasper|first=Clint|date=14 April 2020|website=ABC News|language=en-AU|access-date=13 June 2021}} In 2021, the two companies had reached a confidential settlement.{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-03/bega-wins-multi-million-dollar-payment-from-kraft-heinz/100187204|title=Dispute over peanut butter branding to cost US giant $9 million|last=Somerville|first=Peter|date=3 June 2021|website=ABC News|language=en-AU|access-date=13 June 2021}}

In November 2020 Bega purchased Lion Dairy & Drinks from the Kirin Company for $534 million.{{Cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2020-11-26/bega-cheese-to-buy-lion-dairy-from-japanese-kirin/12910480|title = Bega Cheese buys Lion Dairy from Japan's Kirin|website = Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date = 26 November 2020}} . The acquisition included major dairy brands such as Dairy Farmers and Pura Milk.

=Bega Group (2022-Present)=

In 2022, Bega consolidated its expanding portfolio under the Bega Group, bringing together brands including Bega Cheese, Vegemite, Pura, Dare Iced Coffee, Dairy Farmers, Farmers Union, and Zooper Dooper.{{Cite web|date=24 November 2022 |title=Bega Group rolls out major new-look corporate rebrand |url=https://www.c-store.com.au/bega-group-unveils-major-corporate-rebrand/ |access-date=30 January 2023 |website=Convenience & Impulse Retailing |language=en-US}}{{cn|date=January 2023}}

In August 2023, Bega entered into an agreement to acquire Betta Milk and Meander Valley Dairy from TasFoods Limited for $11 million. The deal also included rights to the Pyengana Dairy brand, further strengthening Bega's presence in Tasmania and the national dairy sector.{{Cite web |last=Noack |first=Georgina |date=30 August 2023 |title=Australian cheese giant Bega Group buys homegrown Tasmanian dairy brands in historic $11m deal |url=https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/australian-cheese-giant-bega-group-buys-homegrown-tasmanian-dairy-brands-in-historic-11m-deal/news-story/725e121480148c0c8a9ecf00ec060742 |access-date=2 September 2023 |website=News.com.au}}

Brands

Bega Cheese
Vegemite
Dairy Farmers
Pura
Farmers Union
Yoplait (Australia-only)
Daily Juice
Zooper Duper
Dare Iced Coffee
Masters
Big M
Mildura Juice{{cite web |title=2024 Annual Report |url=https://begagroup.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/143432_Bega-Annual-Report-2024-Interactive-2.pdf |website=Bega Group |format=PDF |date=September 2024 |access-date=10 June 2025}}