After five years and 145 participants in the South Island MyMilk will be offered for the 2021 season in the north.
Participants can supply milk to Fonterra for up to five seasons on annual renewals without share requirements.
They need to be first-time dairy farm owners who meet eligibility criteria, which include an exemption for previous ownership or equity share of up to 20% of a supply farm. The exemption is an aid to farm succession.
They can also be converting to dairy or an existing farm that previously supplied another processor.
The scheme is also being extended to help existing Fonterra farm owners buy another Fonterra farm.
MyMilk suppliers have 5c/kg a season deducted from the farmgate milk price and that goes into buying Fonterra Shareholder Fund units, preparatory to becoming shareholders.
They can earn reward dollars for Farm Source buying but they are locked until the transition to share ownership.
Joining MyMilk can be done at any time, unlike new shared supply co-operative membership that must begin at the start of the season.
Participants are required to meet the same terms and conditions as full shareholders with regards to milk quality, safety and sustainability.
MyMilk has a supply ceiling of 5% of the co-operative’s milk collection.
Meanwhile, 10% of Fonterra shareholders used the Fixed Price Milk option in its first season of operation.
After the seventh monthly offering in December 1033 farmers had signed FMP contracts for 2019-20 milk supply at prices ranging from $6.60 to $7.46/kg, including the 10c service fee.
Fonterra’s announcement in early December of a 25c boost in the farmgate milk price forecast range to $7-$7.60 curtailed farmer interest in the December FMP offering.
There were 85 applications for 3.9m kilos at the fixed price of $7.46 and as the co-op made available up to 14m kilos all applications were successful.
In total 63.5m kilos were contracted in the seven offerings from June to December.
That represents 4.3% of Fonterra’s latest DIRA forecast supply from shareholders of 1479m kilos.
Only in August did the application total of 19.4m kilos exceed the offered amount of 15m kg and all applications were scaled back to 77%.
FMP offerings will resume in March, for milk to be supplied next season.
