Cooperative

ARLA IS OWNED BY DAIRY FARMERS

We are here to make the most of our farmers’ milk by transforming it into great tasting products like cheese, butter, milk powder and more, which we hope you, together with millions of other people around the world, enjoy.

Arla is owned by our dairy farmers and we work to get the best possible price for the milk they deliver so that they are able to invest in their farms and even expand in order to bring more milk to the world. 

The cooperative philosophy

The money that Arla Foods makes when you buy our products is equally split between each litre of milk that our owners have supplied. Every year the farmers invest some of their earnings back into the business so it can develop – to secure their own future and the future of the next generation of farmers. That’s the cooperative philosophy.

Our 13,500 current owners are based in seven countries: Sweden, Denmark, the UK, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Each of them has a vote in the cooperative democracy.

Read more about the democratic system – it really is quite interesting! 

COOPERATIVE DEMOCRACY

Learn more

The cooperative history

Back in 1880's Danish and Swedish milk farmers joined in cooperatives to make larger and better dairies