Jobs have been lost at Fonterra but New Zealand's biggest company won't say how many as its major internal business review and debt reduction drive rolls on. As a farmer-owned cooperative its reason-for-being is to pay its farmer-owners the maximum possible through the annual milk price. It has had no formal earnings retention policy to shore up the balance sheet when big-ticket outlays and overseas investment losses happen as they have been in recent years. Fonterra's share price has fallen more than 20 per cent since its stretched balance sheet became public last year. Fitch Ratings earlier this month put Fonterra on a "negative" outlook while retaining, for now, its "A" long-term credit rating.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 15, 2019 00:22 UTC