history of soy yogurt, soy acidophilus milk and other ... - SoyInfo Center

Andreas and Peter Fitch, because both are very forward
looking, energetic, and supportive men. The company now
makes only soymilk. Other companies in the Haldane Foods
Group now make the other soy products that Unisoy used
to make–which is more effi cient. For example, Genice
Foods Ltd. makes soy margarine, yogurts, and ice creams.
Unisoy plans to expand into a larger plant, probably at a new
location. That phase, which will begin within 12 months, will
involve an investment of £3 to £4 million. He is presently
meeting with APV in connection with a new soymilk plant.
Unisoy has not launched any new products since mid-1990.
Neil has been too busy absorbing the Granose line into
his production. Unisoy is now making all the soymilk that
Granose used to buy from DE-VAU-GE, to use in continuing
the Granose line of products that contain soymilk. Thus the
Unisoy/Haldane now makes the profi t that DE-VAU-GE
used to make.
The acquisition of Granose by the Haldane Foods group
was the most brilliant move one can imagine. 90% of the
products that Granose was buying from other companies can
be manufactured within the Haldane Foods Group. Granose’s
best products included their margarine, soymilk, ice cream,
and yogurt. Peter Fitch deserves the credit for this stroke of
genius.
The Haldane Foods Group now sells 4 soymilk brands,
all now made by Unisoy: So Good (which used to be
purchased from DE-VAU-GE; Sanitarium Foods in Australia
only registered their brand in Australia and New Zealand),
Granose, Unisoy, and White Wave. Neil believes that Unisoy
makes the best-tasting soymilk in Europe today. Recently
there was an independent magazine survey of all soymilks
on the market and the Granose brand made by Unisoy won
fi rst, second, sixth, and ninth places. The UK soymilk market
is extremely competitive and the prices are much lower
relative to cow’s milk than they are in the USA. On average
at all retail outlets, cow’s milk retails for about £0.50 per liter
versus £0.59 to £0.79 per liter for soymilk. Thus soymilk in
the UK retails for about 38% more than cow’s milk.
Note: In the USA, cow’s milk retails for about $0.72/
liter and soymilk retails for about $1.86/liter or about 2.6
times as much as cow’s milk. The current exchange rate is
1.79 U.S. dollars = 1 British pound. Thus U.S. cow’s milk
would sell for £0.40/liter (20% less than British cow’s milk)
and soymilk would sell for £1.04/liter (about 45% more than
British soymilk).
In the UK most of the soymilk is sold in the multiples
(supermarkets) in half liters (500 ml) cartons, and that is
where the greatest growth is. There, soymilk is only about
20% more expensive than cow’s milk. (Note: In the USA
very little soymilk is sold in supermarkets.)
In the UK, Provamel (made by Alpro in Belgium) has
about 42% of the total soymilk market. The four brands
made by Unisoy have about 35-37%. The remaining 21-23%
is divided among Sunrise, Plamil, and a few others. There is
HISTORY OF SOY YOGURT & CULTURED SOYMILK 346
© Copyright Soyinfo Center 2012
very strong soymilk brand loyalty in the UK.
Unisoy increasingly refers to itself as “the soyamilk
division of Haldane Foods Group.” The “Milk ‘n’ By-
Products Ltd.” part of the name will be dropped very shortly.
The last part of the soyfoods market that the Haldane
Foods Group will attempt to capture is tofu, since Cauldron
Foods has a very big lead on Haldane in this market. The
Granose line of dry mixes used to compete directly with the
Haldane Food Group’s Hera line. Now all these products are
made at one location.
The relationship between ADM, British Arkady, and
the Haldane Foods Group has changed. The Haldane
Foods Group is no longer part of British Arkady; both are
now on the same level on the organization chart, and both
report directly to ADM’s European headquarters (ADM
International Ltd. in England; John R. Mahlich, managing
director). Peter Fitch used to work for British Arkady
before the Haldane Foods Group was formed. Address:
Unit 1, Cromwell Trading Estate, Cromwell Rd., Bredbury,
Stockport, Cheshire SK6 2RF, England. Phone: 061-430
6329.
924. Archer Daniels Midland Co. 1991. Annual report. P.O.
Box 1470, Decatur, IL 62525. 33 p. Sept.
• Summary: Net sales and other operating income for 1991
(year ended June 30) were $8,468 million, up 9.2% from
1990. Net earnings for 1991 were $466.7 million, down
3.5% from 1990. Shareholders’ equity (net worth) is $3,922
million, up 9.8% from 1990.
“Foreign oilseeds operations were strengthened with
the acquisition of a major softseed plant in Erith, U.K., and
several plants in Canada. Soy protein facilities currently
being added to the Europoort plant in The Netherlands
should be in operation by year’s end and a marketing
arrangement to supply Loders Croklaan, B.V., with soy
protein concentrate gives the plant a good production base to
begin operations.”
“ADM now operates 136 U.S. processing plants and
owns, or has an ownership interest in, 34 foreign plants in
seven countries. The Company 149 terminal, country, and
river grain elevators.” A 2-page color photo (p. 2-3) shows
“ADM’s Europoort plant, near Rotterdam, the world’s largest
soybean processing facility. Construction is underway for
the addition of a vegetable oil refi nery, soy protein plants
and a second cogeneration unit.” ADM’s “oilseed processing
operations operated at lower profi t levels. Export margins
were reduced due to heavily subsidized South American and
European oilseed product sales.”
“The protein specialties division expanded its position
as the world’s largest supplier of value-added soy proteins
this year. Construction began on a facility at Europoort to
produce soy protein concentrates, isolated soy proteins and
the specialized raw material from which these products are
formulated. The facility will serve the growing demand in