Tatua Co-operative Dairy Company, trading as Tatua, is a small independent co-operativedairy company in the Matamata-Piako District of the Waikato Region, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located in the small rural locality of Tatuanui, approximately 8 kilometres east of Morrinsville. The co-operative is owned by 112 farmer shareholders, all within a 12 kilometre radius of the processing factory[2].
The co-operative has maintained a strong independent history within the New Zealand dairy industry. In the 2001 mega-merger for the New Zealand dairy industry - which formed Fonterra - Tatua shareholders decided to remain independent (along with Westland Milk Products). Given that New Zealand had over 500 dairy co-operatives in the 1930s, Tatua is unique in that it is the only New Zealand dairy co-operative remaining that has never been part of any merger throughout its history.[3]
Despite being the smallest dairy company in New Zealand, Tatua often records the highest payout for milksolids to the farmer shareholders[4]. This level of performance has been seen as a strong factor in Tatua remaining independent. While the high level of payout is partly due to a small catchment area (which reduces processing costs), the excellent financial performance of Tatua is increasingly attributed to focusing on value-added milk products rather than traditional, mass-produced, commodity-based milk products such as milk powder, butter and cheese.[5]
