With three years heading the former farmer-owned dairy co-operative, Brendish has just completed Westland’s first year of transition to Chinese-owned Yili company.
Reflecting on her personal goals for the next five years, Brendish has decided to step down from her role and allow a new leader to take Westland into the future with Yili.
The chief executive role will be assumed by Mr Shiqing Jian, resident director for Westland Dairy Company Limited and Oceania Dairy Limited.
Jian said Brendish has been chief executive of Westland during its most difficult years.
“Repositioning Westland away from a historical commodities producer to a modern company with hugely successful branded products such as Westgold as well as segregated milk products among other key innovations has ensured that Westland will continue to be part of the New Zealand dairy industry for the next generation,” Jian said.
“Yili is grateful to Toni (Brendish) for her stewardship of Westland over the past 12 months as we transitioned to Yili ownership.
Brendish said it has been a privilege and a delight to lead Westland over the past four years.
“It has taken an enormous amount of work to move Westland towards profitability, but I am confident that Westland is now in a position to achieve this,” she said.
“I will continue to watch Westland’s journey closely and know that its dedicated and innovative staff will continue to keep pushing it forward.’’
Jian said demand for Westland and Oceania’s products is continuing to rise internationally, demonstrating the value that global consumers place on NZ dairy goods.
“We are convinced that the future for the dairy industry in NZ is a very bright one indeed,’’ Jian said.
“Increased demand for our products shows how much value global consumers place on the undoubted quality of NZ-based dairy products and their potential health benefits because of the advantages of NZ’s climate, location and quality processing facilities.
“We are committed to ensuring that our dairy processors play a strong role in the continued success of the NZ dairy industry by creating products of the highest calibre that contribute to the promotion of global good health.”
