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The Wiseman family has been involved in the dairy industry for 60 years. Their chief executive, Robert Wiseman, joined the company in 1975 and along with his brother Alan, led the development of the company by foreseeing that there was huge growth potential in supplying milk to supermarkets and local convenience stores. We put him in The Last Word hotseat, with freelance journalist Chris Walkland asking the questions.

However, against this backdrop, far more constructive relationships were also developed, which have survived and prospered to this day.

The First Milk and Wiseman relationship is one of them. Now the two organisations seem more interconnected and comfortable with each other than ever before. Is that how Robert Wiseman, chief executive of Wiseman, sees it?

“Very much so. There is an element of dependability. Our relationship was already very good but strengthened even more when we entered into the shareholder relationship with First Milk. The synergy benefits have grown since then. First Milk is our biggest supplier, and we are their biggest customer. These partnerships don’t just come about by chance, they come about because of history, trust and because we both value the relationship.”

That First Milk is good for Wiseman is obvious – it supplies around half a billion litres to Wiseman – around 40% of its requirements. Wiseman also has no milk balancing capacity and so relies upon and “pays well for” this essential function. That Wiseman is good for First Milk is obvious too, with the co-op benefiting from its relationship with a premium customer which has grown to the extent that it now sells one in every four litres of fresh liquid milk processed in the UK today.

Wiseman has invested more in the industry than any other company in the sector, with capital expenditure since 1994 totalling £320m in liquid dairies and distribution centres.

“We believe we have the best and most efficient liquid dairies not only in the UK, but in the world,” says Robert. “As far as we are aware, Droitwich is the world’s biggest liquid dairy at 550m litre capacity; while the £66m Bridgwater dairy will be the newest when it comes on stream in December.”

No co-op could have matched that investment, least of all one in the very early stages of its development. But a co-op can co-operate to share in the benefits, and First Milk has done that by supplying milk into Wiseman’s network of dairies.

The bond between the two companies is typified by Wiseman’s attitude to Beverley Hodson’s (First Milk Non-Executive Director) position on the Wiseman Board. At the time of First Milk’s 15% investment in the business, Wiseman gave us a right to have a non-executive director position on the Wiseman Board for a set period. Beverley took that seat and represented First Milk. That right has now expired, but because of the positive relationship between the two companies she still takes up the position.

“It makes sense for First Milk to have an understanding of the strategic aspirations of Wiseman as we develop the business,” says Robert.
He accepts the liquid milk world has changed, but then says that the dairy world always has, and will!

And talking of change, it is clear that First Milk and Milk Link have not only found their feet but are walking tall. How does he view the proposed merger? Could a combined business increase its stake in Wiseman?

He laughs. “The merger makes good sense, and we were quick to offer our support and encouragement. But with regard to Wiseman, I’m only 52, and I hugely enjoying what I’m doing. I’ve got an ambitious management team, and together we’re taking the business forward. We’ve got no plans to sell up.”

He clearly has a lot of time and regard for Peter Humphreys and Richard Greenhalgh, and believes they have put in place an excellent management team to drive the business forward.

However he dodges the question somewhat as to whether Peter will be successful in achieving price parity with plc suppliers. “I can understand why he would set that as a target. It’s a lot easier to see in today’s market than before, but it’s not for me to comment on First Milk’s approach to milk pricing.”

As for milk prices, he has been quoted as saying that farmer prices could be 30ppl by January. Does he really think that?

“The point that I was making is that if the market price for farm gate milk is 30ppl, then that’s what we’ll pay! Our message on milk price hasn’t changed over the years: Wiseman will continue to pay a healthy premium to secure milk which meets our specific requirements, over and above the market value of farm gate milk.”