LACTALIS SOUTH AFRICA IS THE NEW NAME FOR PARMALAT SOUTH AFRICA
Lactalis South Africa is the new name for Parmalat SA. The name change came into effect on 1 February 2020.
This is a name change only and Lactalis SA remains home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président, SteriStumpie, Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury. These familiar brands hold strong positions across several dairy product categories, ranging from cheese, yoghurt, milk, and custard, to flavoured milk, cream, drinking yoghurt, maas, fruit beverages, butter and ice cream.
The Lactalis Group is a family-led company guided by a passion for dairy that was founded in 1933 by André Besnier in Laval in the west of France, the heart of French dairy country. Parmalat SA had been part of the international Lactalis family group since the Lactalis Group acquired a majority share in Parmalat SpA in 2011.
Lactalis South Africa is the new name for Parmalat SA. The name change came into effect on 1 February 2020.
This is a name change only and Lactalis SA remains home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président, SteriStumpie, Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury. These familiar brands hold strong positions across several dairy product categories, ranging from cheese, yoghurt, milk, and custard, to flavoured milk, cream, drinking yoghurt, maas, fruit beverages, butter and ice cream.
The Lactalis Group is a family-led company guided by a passion for dairy that was founded in 1933 by André Besnier in Laval in the west of France, the heart of French dairy country. Parmalat SA had been part of the international Lactalis family group since the Lactalis Group acquired a majority share in Parmalat SpA in 2011.
The Lactalis Group took 100% control in 2019 and the local name change to Lactalis South Africa was the final step towards fully integrating the South African business with its international parent company that has a rich history and tradition in bringing the enjoyment of dairy products into people’s lives.
The Lactalis Group is the world’s number one dairy group with 250 production sites in 50 countries and more than 90 000 team members in 94 countries. In South Africa the international Lactalis Group legacy and knowledge merges with local dairy know-how passion that has provided jobs and wholesome dairy products in South Africa since the early 1900s.
Our brands include award-winning cheeses under the Parmalat, Galbani, Président and Melrose brands, iconic flavoured milks such as Steri Stumpie, a range of creamy yoghurts and long life milks, butter, ice cream, cream and fruit juice. Lactalis South Africa also distributes ranges of milk specially formulated for children, and for people who are lactose intolerant.
Lactalis South Africa's corporate values are based on the following three core principles: Ambition, Engagement with Simplicity.
Ambition refers to continuously improving the way we do our work, setting high goals and striving for excellent performance. In terms of Engagement the company focuses on accountability, loyalty, tenacity and entrepreneurship, while Lactalis SA strives towards Simplicity in the way we go about our business and to ensure our business methods and systems are accessible, transparent and pragmatic.
27 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa, the new player in the South African dairy landscape, has announced its entry to the local market with a bang by claiming the prestigious South African Dairy Championships Product of the Year prize for its Président Extra Mature Cheddar. This is the third time the past five years the company – previously known as Parmalat SA – has claimed this top South African dairy industry prize.
In addition Lactalis South Africa (LSA) also claimed 11 SA Champion accolades and three Qualité awards at the 2020 South African Dairy Championships. The Qualité mark of excellence is only given to the crème de la crème of the entries. LSA won Qualité awards for the following products: Président Extra Mature Cheddar (a full rounded cheese with a sweet, nutty profile that melts in the mouth) and two products made for Woolworths: Extra Mature White Cheddar and Mature Gouda.
Lactalis South Africa is home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président and Steri Stumpie, as well as Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury.
“This is the third time in five years we have won the Product of the Year award for one of our cheeses,” says Marek Warzywoda, General Manager: LSA. “I am so proud of the LSA team. It is a clear indication of how high the quality of our products is and how dedicated and superb our teams are. We would like to thank Agri-Expo for another fantastic and well-organised competition and for upholding such high standards for the local dairy industry.
“At LSA our teams work extremely hard to ensure our products remain excellent and awards (particularly the Product of the Year accolades of the past few years) are such incredible testaments to their ongoing ambition to deliver quality products. For our entire team this is a ray of welcome good news amidst the unprecedented challenges we all face due to the Corona-19 pandemic. I urge everyone to stay safe and stay home during these difficult times.”
This year’s award ceremony of the annual SA Dairy Championships, the largest dairy competition in Africa, was presented as a virtual event for the first time in its 187th anniversary in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 event included entries from 74 manufacturers who entered 975 products in 100 different dairy classes.
* LSA is part of the international Lactalis Group.
1 April 2019
Parmalat South Africa cemented its position as a Big Cheese in the South African dairy landscape by claiming three coveted Qualité awards, 13 SA Champion accolades and 15 first prizes across dairy categories at the 2019 South African Dairy Championships.
Winning products in each class are crowned SA Champions, while a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence. The 2019 event’s 75 judges ranged from dairy technologists and cheese retailers to chefs.
The Parmalat products that claimed the prestigious Qualité mark of excellence are Président Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months), and two products made for Woolworths: Matured Gouda (10 months) and Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months). The Président cheese is made at PSA’s Bonnievale Plant, while the other two cheeses are made at its Ladismith Plant.
PSA’s SA Champion products are:
Président Brie Ready-to-Eat, Parmalat Matured Cheddar (6 months), Melrose Biltong Wedges, Steri Stumpie Plus Thick Chocolate Praline, Steri Stumpie Cream Soda, YogoFun Banana Custard Low Fat Drinking Yoghurt, and the following products made for Woolworths: Matured Gouda (10 months), Continental Extra Hard Cheese (Black Wax, 20 months), Real Vanilla Dairy Ice Cream, Soft Scoop Vanilla and Berry Flavoured Ice Cream, Matured Cheddar (4 months), Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months) and Feta Black Pepper.
Eugene Swarts, PSA’s General Manager, praised the teams involved in making Parmalat’s quality range of products and securing awards for products ranging from cheese and ice cream, to drinking yoghurt and flavoured milk. In addition, Parmalat claimed all top three prizes in the SA Dairy Champs category for Processed Cheese Single Portions with Melrose Biltong Wedges receiving the SA Champion title, and Melrose Cheddar Wedges in second and Melrose Sweetmilk Wedges in third place.
“Awards like these underline the fact that our products meet the highest standards and delight consumers. We are proud of our teams’ hard work and we salute their dedication and commitment to meeting the exceptional standards we set for ourselves.”
* Parmalat SA (Pty) Ltd.’s parent company is the French international dairy company Lactalis
8 November 2018
Parmalat SA (PSA) wowed international cheese judges and won a gold and two bronze awards at the 2018 World Cheese Awards (WCA). PSA's Gold award was for its Président 12-month Mature Cheddar, while the two Bronze medals went to Parmalat Cheddar and the Woolworths 18-month Vintage Cheddar produced by Parmalat SA.
PSA bettered its performance at this year's event after only claiming one Silver and one Bronze award last year. This was the 31st annual WCA and the 2018-event was held in Norway for the first time. The 2018 WCA event was judged by a team of 235 judges from 41 different countries, and 3472 cheeses competed for the top prize that this year went to a Gouda-style cheese made on a small farm in Norway.
Cathy Eve, PSA Marketing Executive, has welcomed the WCA accolades for the three Parmalat Cheddars, saying these outstanding international results underline the quality of Parmalat's cheese range. "It is a clear indication of the high quality of our cheese range and the dedication and expertise of our teams. Parmalat remains committed to producing high quality dairy products and we are proud to also have this acknowledged by international cheese experts."
The international accolades follow after PSA rewrote local dairy history earlier this year by claiming the prestigious Product of the Year prize for the second year running at the annual SA Dairy Championship. PSA secured the 2018 Product of the Year award for the second consecutive year for its 10-month Mature Gouda, an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. This achievement was the first of its kind for the 185-year-old event. At the 2018 SA Dairy Championship Parmalat SA triumphed across dairy classes by claiming seven Qualité* awards and an exceptional total of 15 SA Championship prizes. The SA Dairy Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world.
* The Qualité award is South Africa's only officially acknowledged symbol of outstanding dairy quality and the following seven Parmalat products now carry the much desired Qualité black and gold emblem: Président Matured Gouda 6 Months, UHT Low Fat Milk, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited Strawberry, as well as the following three cheeses produced for Woolworths: Matured Gouda 10 Months, Vintage Cheddar White, and Matured Gouda 20 Months.
26 March 2018
Parmalat SA has rewritten SA dairy history by claiming the prestigious Product of the Year prize for the second year running at the annual SA Dairy Championships. This achievement is a first of its kind for the 185-year-old event.
PSA secured the 2018 Product of the Year award for the second consecutive year for its 10-month Mature Gouda, an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. PSA triumphed across dairy classes by claiming seven Qualité awards and an exceptional total of 15 SA Championship prizes. Winning products in each class are crowned SA Champions, a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence, while only the most superior of these is named as the overall Product of the Year.
The Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of outstanding dairy quality and the following seven Parmalat products will soon be sporting the much desired Qualité black and gold emblem: Président Matured Gouda 6 Months, UHT Low Fat Milk, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited – Strawberry, as well as the following three cheeses produced for Woolworths: Matured Gouda 10 Months, Vintage Cheddar – White, and Matured Gouda 20 Months.
Cathy Eve, PSA Marketing Executive, says the team is delighted with the results. “This is the third time in nine years we have won the Product of the Year award for one our cheeses, a clear indication of the high quality of our products and the dedication and diligence of our teams. To make SA Dairy Champs history by winning Product of the Year two years in a row is an added bonus! We’re also especially proud to have secured Qualité awards for two of our Parmalat yoghurts and our Parmalat EverFresh UHT Low Fat Milk. This shows our commitment to high quality dairy products across our product portfolio.”
SA Dairy Championship chief judge and international dairy expert Kobus Mulder says that for a product to be chosen as Dairy Product of the Year in a competition of this nature is a long and difficult journey and the dream of every dairy technologist. “That the honour befalls this year’s winner of the prestigious title for the second year in a row, is exceptional. Not only is it an extraordinary performance, but also proof of sustained good manufacturing practices and quality control by the personnel of the manufacturer. Technically and gastronomically the Parmalat 10- month Mature Gouda is as close to perfection as a food product can come.”
This year’s SA Dairy Championship was contested by 83 producers who entered 945 dairy products. The Championship was first presented in 1834 and is the oldest of its kind in Africa. This year products competed for the attention of 84 judges ranging from food technologists and cheese retailers, to food bloggers and chefs.
30 November 2017
Parmalat won two prizes at the prestigious 2017 World Cheese Awards (WCA)* in London where more than 3000 cheeses from across the world were judged. Parmalat’s 20-month aged Mature Gouda made for Woolworths was awarded a silver medal, while Parmalat’s Medium Cheddar won a bronze award.
This international nod of approval for Parmalat’s Matured Gouda produced for Woolworths follows after it was also named as the South African Product of the Year at this year’s SA Dairy Championships. The cheese is an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese.
Parmalat also excelled in the rest of the 2017 SA Dairy Championship competition by winning four coveted Qualité Mark of Excellence awards and 11 SA Champion prizes. The Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world. Three of PSA’s Qualité award winners are produced at its Ladismith Plant: the Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Parmalat Matured Cheddar, and the Matured Gouda (maximum age 12 months) produced for Woolworths. The fourth PSA product claiming a Qualité award is the Woolworths Vintage Cheddar (minimum age 18 months) produced at the Parmalat Bonnievale Plant.
Commenting on the World Cheese Awards results Cathy Eve, Parmalat SA’s Marketing Executive, says “Parmalat is immensely proud of the team of cheese makers in our business who consistently produce such high quality cheeses. To win local accolades in the form of Qualité awards is very important and to have the same product recognised internationally is a testament to the high level of expertise in the South African industry.”
*This year was the 30th time the annual WCA event took place and the international entries were adjudicated by 230 judges. Cornish kern, a British cheese, was crowned as the overall World Champion Cheese.
20 March 2017
Parmalat SA (PSA) has asserted its position as the South African dairy industry’s big cheese by claiming the top prize at the 2017 SA Dairy Championships. PSA collected the Product of the Year award for its Matured Gouda (10 months), an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. Parmalat also excelled in the rest of the 2017 competition by winning four coveted Qualité Mark of Excellence awards and 11 SA Champion prizes.
This year’s Championship was contested by 83 producers with 854 products competing in 102 classes. Winning products are crowned SA Champions and only a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence, while the most superior of these is named the Product of the Year.
Three of PSA’s Qualité award winners are produced at its Ladismith Plant: the Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Parmalat Matured Cheddar, and the Matured Gouda (maximum age 12 months) produced for Woolworths. The fourth PSA product claiming a Qualité award is the Woolworths Vintage Cheddar (minimum age 18 months) produced at the Parmalat Bonnievale Plant.
Parmalat’s 11 SA Champion prizes are for the following products: Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Parmalat Matured Cheddar, Woolworths Vintage Cheddar produced by PSA, Simonsberg Camembert (Traditional), Président Brie (Ready-to-eat), Simonsberg Brie (Cambrieni), Simonsberg Feta with Herbs, Simonsberg Blue-Veined Cheese (Creamy Blue), Melrose Full Cream Bacon Spread, Melrose IWS Cheddar Slices, and Parmalat Low Fat Chunky Cottage Cheese.
Cathy Eve, PSA’s Marketing Executive, says the team is thrilled about this year’s SA Dairy Championships performance.
“This is the second time in eight years we have won a Product of the Year award; the previous one was in 2009 for an Extra Matured Cheddar produced for Woolworths. Our brand is built on the promise of consistent quality and winning these sought-after cheese awards is not only an immense
honour for Parmalat SA, but it is also validation for the continuous hard work by our various teams to ensure our range of cheeses maintains its exacting quality standards.”
Kobus Mulder, Chief Judge for the SA Dairy Championships and international dairy expert, says the process of determining the Dairy Product of the Year from such diverse classes as ice cream and butter, or cottage cheese and sheep’s milk cheese, is no easy feat. “Agri-Expo instituted a new procedure this year – all the Qualité winners are lined up and evaluated to determine the most superior dairy product from amongst these exceptional products. In previous years the product with the highest overall score was awarded this honour.”
Parmalat cheese has once again showed its class, this time impressing international cheese connoisseurs with its taste and quality. The Simonsberg 6-Month Matured Gouda has been named as a Super Gold Award winner at the World Cheese Awards in Spain. The Super Gold Awards list the world’s best cheeses and the Simonsberg Gouda was one of only two South African cheeses (and the only locally-produced hard cheese) to claim this accolade. It was also the first time a Parmalat cheese won the Super Gold Award at this prestigious annual event.
The winning Simonsberg Gouda is a light creamy cheese with a milky-sweet, savoury taste, and with pleasant tastes of salt and pepper lingering in the mouth. The cheese is produced at the Parmalat SA (PSA) Ladismith Plant and is available at all good retailers.
More than 3 000 cheeses from 32 countries were entered for the 29th World Cheese Awards and 266 judges from 26 countries were tasked with choosing the select group of award-winning cheeses from the thousands of entries.
Parmalat cheeses recorded its best overall annual performance at this year’s Awards by also securing two more gold, one silver and two bronze prizes in other cheese classes. These winners are: gold – Président Brie (class 4), and Simonsberg 24-Month Matured Gouda (class 10); silver – Simonsberg 10-Month Matured Gouda (class 16), and bronze – Parmalat Mild Cheddar (class 2), and Parmalat Smoked Salmon-flavoured Cream Cheese (class 1).
Earlier this year PSA was named as the top performer at the 2016 South African Diary Championship, winning an unrivalled five Qualité and 12 SA Champion awards. André Mahoney, PSA Marketing Executive, says the Super Gold Award proves that the Parmalat cheese basket can compete with the best international cheeses. “Our focus has always been and still remains on great-tasting quality and we are proud that this is not only recognised locally, but also internationally.”
PSA announced in September that its entire Simonsberg cheese range will be rebranded as Président during the coming year. The cheese range’s name will change, but the taste and quality SA consumers love and appreciate, will remain unchanged. The full new-named range, featuring both Simonsberg and Président on-pack branding, is already on shelf. Président, one of the world’s leading cheese brands, was founded in 1968 in France. Today it is sold in over 147 countries and globally produced in more than 100 factories. Président will now share its cheese-making passion and know-how as it pairs with Simonsberg, a Parmalat-owned brand that is similarly rich in heritage and tradition.
Parmalat SA emerged as the top performer at the 2016 South African Diary Championship with an unrivalled five Qualité and 12 SA Champion awards. The Championship weighed the company up against a record 85 other manufacturers and underlined Parmalat’s commitment to producing quality products.
The Qualité award is the mark of excellence for dairy products in South Africa and PSA claimed the coveted award for its Round Gouda, as well as the following products produced for Woolworths: Unsalted Butter, Ice Cream with Condiments (WW Soft Scoop Vanilla and Berry Ice Cream), Matured Gouda, and Extra Hard Cheese.
The PSA products named as SA Champions include Gouda, Matured Gouda and Gouda matured for 24 months, Cheddar, White Cheddar (both those matured for 6 months and for 12 months), Simonsberg Traditional Camembert, Président Ready-to-Eat Brie, Unsalted Butter, Garlic Butter, Melrose wedges and Ice Cream.
André Mahoney, PSA’s Marketing Executive, says Parmalat is proud of its performance against an increasing number of competitors and products.
“It’s great to see Président, one of our relatively new launches in South Africa, taking its place on the podium this year alongside Parmalat’s existing range of established product ranges. Our teams work extremely hard to ensure that we honour the quality promise we make to consumers; we not only strive to continuously improve on what we do, but we also look at innovation and new products to give consumers an even greater choice of excellent Parmalat products. Our 2016 SA Dairy Champs performances once again demonstrate that consumers and customers can rely on us to provide them with dairy products of exceptional quality.”
The 2016 Championship was adjudicated by 72 judges tasked with assessing the record 886 products entered by 86 manufacturers.
Parmalat’s Melrose Cheese team received the World Packaging Organisation (WPO) Packaging Excellence award at a glittering event in Milan, Italy in August 2015. The WPO awards ceremony formed part of the international IPACK-IMA 2015 expo.
This was the proudly South African Melrose Wedges tub’s second international award: towards the end of last year the same Melrose packaging design was named as general winner of the AfriStar Trophy for Best Overall Packaging at the inaugural AfriStar Awards in Nairobi, Kenya. The 200g tub was also declared the winner in three other AfriStar categories: Best in Plastic, Best in Food and Best in Sustainability. The Melrose Cheese Wedges tub was developed by PSA in conjunction with Dairypack Tubs.
Parmalat has emerged as one of the top performers at the 2015 Qualité Awards, claiming three prestigious Qualité awards, while no less than fifteen of its products were named as SA Champions in various classes.
The Qualité mark is awarded to products of excellence and Parmalat’s awards are for Parmalat’s Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese, Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese and the Matured (18 months old) White Cheddar Parmalat produces for Woolworths.
The products named as SA Champions are winners in each of the 95 classes in the various categories that include cheese, butter, yoghurt, ice cream, and flavoured milk. Parmalat claimed first prizes for the following products:
Parmalat Round Gouda; Simonsberg Matured Gouda; Parmalat Garlic & Parsley Butter; Parmalat Processed Cheddar Spread; Simonsberg Mozzarella portions; Simonsberg Feta with Black Pepper; Parmalat Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese; Simonsberg Medium Fat Smoked Ham Cream Cheese; Royalty Tin Roof Dairy Ice cream, and Royalty Vanilla Dairy Ice Cream, as well as all the following products produced for Woolworths – Unsalted Butter (250g); Plain Feta; White Cheddar (12 months); Matured White Cheddar (18 months) and Matured White Cheddar (12 months).
Parmalat dominated in the category for Cream Cheese with Condiments with the Parmalat Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese claiming first place and Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese placed second. Qualité status is usually only awarded to the winner of a specific class, but in this case the judges decided that both the first and second place products would be given a Qualité award of excellence.
Parmalat South Africa (PSA) secured three awards in the 2014 World Cheese Awards, underlining its commitment to producing quality cheeses that can compete with the best of the rest of the world.
Parmalat’s entries were judged along with some 2700 other cheeses from 30 countries around the globe at this annual event.
The PSA winning cheeses are:
Silver medal for Parmalat Cheddar;
Bronze medal for Simonsberg Camembert ready-to-eat, and a
Bronze medal for Simonsberg Feta with Black Pepper.
The Melrose Cheese Wedges tub, developed by Parmalat SA in conjunction with Dairypack Tubs, was named as general winner of the AfriStar Trophy for Best Overall Packaging at the inaugural AfriStar Awards recently hosted in Nairobi, Kenya. The 200g tub was also declared the winner in three other separate categories: Best in Plastic, Best in Food and Best in Sustainability.
The new Wedges compact tub achieved a significant weight reduction compared with the previous version, while simultaneously improving branding on pack through advanced in-mould labelling (IML). The IML on parallel sides of the tub required precision equipment for accurate positioning of the label to align perfectly with the tamper tab to match the design on the label and avoid obscuring the breathing holes on the lid. With the nutritional information reverse-printed on the lid, the bottom is left unlabelled, allowing consumers to view the product clearly.
The judging panel said the Melrose tub “looks good and it works. The pack has a positive environmental impact with material reduction and the use of mono material making for easy recycling. The design and positioning of the label is brilliant.”
Parmalat’s quality products racked up yet another first-class performance at the 2014 SA Dairy Championship, claiming an unbeatable 13 SA Championship awards for a variety of cheeses, yoghurt and butter, as well as a coveted Qualité mark of excellence. Parmalat’s excellent annual performance at these prestigious awards is testament to its commitment towards producing innovative and quality dairy products.
The SA Dairy Championship was presented for the 180th time this year and Parmalat competed against 67 other producers and a total of 821 products in the various competition categories. The Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world.
The Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of exceptional dairy quality and Parmalat claimed one for its Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese.
Parmalat was the overall top performer in the SA Championship division with no less than 13 champions. The 13 Parmalat SA Champion products are:
Simonsberg Vintage Cheddar, Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Bonnita Matured Cheddar, Simonsberg Extra Matured Cheddar, Simonsberg Ready-to-eat Camembert, Simonsberg Cambrieni, Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese, Melrose Full Cream Cheddar Flavoured Cheese Spread, Melrose Full Cream Sweetmilk Cheese Spread (portions), Melrose Sweetmilk Cheese Slices, Fabulite Fat Free Plain Yoghurt, as well as the Parmalat-produced Woolworths Unsalted Butter 250g and Woolworths Mild Cheddar.
Lactalis South Africa is mindful of our responsibility towards the societies we live, work and do business in. We are committed to sustainable social development through social investments, while recognising that mere social investment is not enough and that effective and long-term corporate social investment (CSI) requires a well-managedprocess aimed at sustainability.
We strive to help meet the developmental needs of society through social investments. Our primary driver for social investments is improving the well-being of the communities in which the investments are made, not securing increased business value.
Click here to view Parmalat’s latest BBEEE certificate.
Built on the legacy of dairy giants
Lactalis South Africa is built on the solid foundations built by dairy giants in South Africa and France over the course of a century.
The international Lactalis Group was founded in 1933 by André Besnier in Laval in the west of France, the heart of French dairy country. The South African dairy roots can be traced back to a few years earlier when a group of local dairy farmers around the Boesmansrivier area in the Western Cape came together to form a cooperative in the early 1900s.
Bonnievale
In 1926 they built a cheese factory in Bonnievale where they used their milk to make Gouda cheese for which there was a growing national market. As the demand for their products increased, more milk producers joined them (from areas such Darling and Zebraskop) and they became a force to be reckoned with.
Soon their enthusiasm led to introduction of a wide range of other dairy products – Fresh milk in bottles, Yoghurt, Cheddar and Cottage cheese which made the Bonnita brand famous around the country.
Port Elizabeth
At the same time there were also dairy developments and growth in the Eastern Cape region. By the 1950s the United Dairy company was the main producer and distributor of milk products around the Port Elizabeth area. United was one of the first dairies in the country to use electric vehicles to deliver milk and in 1958 they pioneered the production of sterilised milk that lasted longer and could be transported further.
Later they were the first South African producer of UHT Milk and Juice in innovative carton packaging from Tetrapack. During the swinging 70s SteriStumpie, the original flavoured milk, was launched based on their sterilisation expertise - and to this day it remains a firm South African favourite.
Johannesburg and Melrose
In Johannesburg, an enterprising business man called Ruben Sieve started a small cheese factory making special cheese spreads that were soon to be called Melrose. Mr Sieve went on to be a Member of Parliament and to fight for equal rights in South African communities, while his brand prospered and became a firm favourite in the lunchbox of South African children and adults alike, while an older generation recognised the famous “Mum remembered Melrose” advertising jingle.
Stellenbosch
Back in the Western Cape local farmers in Stellenbosch pooled their resources in 1945 to become the first dairy to deliver milk daily to homes and hostels in Stellenbosch. The locals loved the rich creamy Jersey milk from their farm at the foothills of the Simonsberg mountain.
The farmers then also started making cheeses and other small cheeseries joined them to form the Simonsberg Cheese Company that would grow to be known for its quality cheeses. Together the Simonsberg team searched the world for cheese experts with innovative ideas. Their research paid off and they introduced South Africans to new cheese experiences that included Simonsberg Feta, Cream Cheese, Camembert and Brie and Creamy blue cheeses
Ladismith
In Ladismith the local dairy farmers set up a cheese making dairy close to a famous landmark that they named their business after Towerkop. They made some of the best Gouda in the country that was sold around South Africa under the SACCA brand.
Parow
In Parow another group of families built operations that served the local market with fresh dairy products on a daily basis. They came together as Van Riebeek Dairies in the mid 1960’s– this successful family enterprise grew in size and eventually merged with bigger dairies, and the factory remains an important producer of milk products in Parow.
Progress and growth
In every town these forward thinking businesses provided jobs to our people and wholesome dairy products to our communities. Their stories all merged in 1998 when the Italian dairy company, Parmalat, joined them all together to form Parmalat South Africa. This new enterprise continued to build on their successes to reach new heights over the next 20 years.
The highlights include, amongst other things, annual top performances at the prestigious SA Dairy Championships, building the biggest cheese plant in SA in Bonnievale, processing nearly 30 000 tonnes of cheese each year by 2019, and collecting 374million litres of milk from 135 farmers around the country in 2019 and transporting it over a distance of 4,5 million km across South Africa.
Lactalis Group and Lactalis South Africa
The former Parmalat SA is now fully part of a family business started in France in the 1930s. Lactalis acquired a majority share in Parmalat SpA in 2011 and took 100% control during 2019. With its acquisition of the majority stake in Parmalat during 2011, the Lactalis Group became the world leader in dairy products, a business move that heralded the emergence of a new truly multi-national Lactalis Group.
The Lactalis Group is the number one Cheese manufacturer in the world, the European leader in Drinking Milk, a major actor in the Chilled Dairy category, a leader in the Cream and Butter market, a growing player in the clinical and infant nutrition markets, as well as the undisputed leader in out-of-home catering, and an expert in dairy ingredients.
The 2020 name change of the local business to Lactalis South Africa is the final step in fully integrating the South African business with its French parent company.
SANHA a Aylesbury June 2021
SANHA Bonnievale June 2021
SANHA Ladismith June 2021
SANHA Parow UHT June 2021
SANHA Port Elizabeth June 2021
MJC certificate for Parmalat, Melrose, Président, Bonnita and Galbani
2019 Yoghurt
Drinking Yoghurt 2019
Drinking Yoghurt 2018
Yoghurt 2018
Imported Cheese – 2017 & 2018
Valid for the year of 2017
Parmalat SA Strand Ice Cream Confirmation
East London Confirmation 2017
Port Elizabeth Confirmation 2017
27 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa, the new player in the South African dairy landscape, has announced its entry to the local market with a bang by claiming the prestigious South African Dairy Championships Product of the Year prize for its Président Extra Mature Cheddar. This is the third time the past five years the company – previously known as Parmalat SA – has claimed this top South African dairy industry prize.
In addition Lactalis South Africa (LSA) also claimed 11 SA Champion accolades and three Qualité awards at the 2020 South African Dairy Championships. The Qualité mark of excellence is only given to the crème de la crème of the entries. LSA won Qualité awards for the following products: Président Extra Mature Cheddar (a full rounded cheese with a sweet, nutty profile that melts in the mouth) and two products made for Woolworths: Extra Mature White Cheddar and Mature Gouda.
Lactalis South Africa is home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président and Steri Stumpie, as well as Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury.
“This is the third time in five years we have won the Product of the Year award for one of our cheeses,” says Marek Warzywoda, General Manager: LSA. “I am so proud of the LSA team. It is a clear indication of how high the quality of our products is and how dedicated and superb our teams are. We would like to thank Agri-Expo for another fantastic and well-organised competition and for upholding such high standards for the local dairy industry.
“At LSA our teams work extremely hard to ensure our products remain excellent and awards (particularly the Product of the Year accolades of the past few years) are such incredible testaments to their ongoing ambition to deliver quality products. For our entire team this is a ray of welcome good news amidst the unprecedented challenges we all face due to the Corona-19 pandemic. I urge everyone to stay safe and stay home during these difficult times.”
This year’s award ceremony of the annual SA Dairy Championships, the largest dairy competition in Africa, was presented as a virtual event for the first time in its 187th anniversary in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 event included entries from 74 manufacturers who entered 975 products in 100 different dairy classes.
* LSA is part of the international Lactalis Group.
26 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa (LSA), one of the main players in the South African dairy industry and the producer of products that include milk, cheese, yoghurt, butter and maas, will continue working towards the sustained manufacturing and delivering of goods and services during the national lockdown period announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa. The lockdown commences at midnight on Thursday 26 March.
LSA is home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président, SteriStumpie, Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury. As per the President’s address, companies that are essential to the production and transportation of food and basic goods will remain open during the lockdown and LSA qualifies as one of these companies.
Some Lactalis SA employees will be required to commute to and from work during this time. The company has made the necessary arrangements to safeguard the health and safety of these employees. Other office-bound LSA’s employees will work from home during the national lockdown period. They will continue to support the business operations and logistics on a daily basis, while also taking various internally prescribed precautions against the spread of COVID-19.
LSA is known for its commitment to quality. The COVID-19 situation constantly changes and the company daily re-evaluates all processes in place to combat this outbreak. If the situation changes with regards to LSA production and operations, the company will issue updates.
*The various LSA brands hold strong positions across several dairy product categories, ranging from cheese, yoghurt, milk, and custard, to flavoured milk, cream, drinking yoghurt, maas, fruit beverages, butter and ice cream. Lactalis South Africa is part of the international Lactalis Group.
19 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa (LSA), one of the main players in the South African dairy industry, is engaged in various activities to minimize the risk of COVID-19 to its various stakeholders. LSA is known for its commitment to quality and given the fact that the COVID-19 in South Africa status constantly changes, the company daily re-evaluates all the processes it has in place to combat this outbreak.
The efforts to minimise the various possible effects of this pandemic is through LSA’s crisis management procedures and managed by the company’s Crisis Committee which meets daily, seven days a week.
LSA immediately engaged its crisis management processes as soon as the World Health Organisation (WHO) classified the COVID-19 viral outbreak as a pandemic. Following President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement of a national disaster on Sunday, LSA stepped up and increased its internal efforts to curb the potential spread of the virus. LSA recognises that people are the company’s greatest strength and to this end it has put various precautionary measures in place, including:
To ensure that the company acts in the best interests of its employees, business partners and other stakeholders, LSA is working closely with its relevant partners to make sure that they follow stringent hygienic and other safety measures. As a responsible corporate citizen, LSA is also engaging and partnering with local authorities and various communities in the fight against this pandemic.
At this stage the company’s measures are precautionary to ensure the safety of its employees, visitors, and business partners. Lactalis South Africa currently does not currently foresee any significant changes to its operations and supply chain.
Should the situation change, LSA will issue an update.
16 March 2020
Quality and consistency are key principles for Lactalis South Africa with regards to any and all products manufactured at our factories. Our Parmalat range of Cream Cheeses (Smoked Salmon, Spring Onion and Plain) as well as our Président range of Cream Cheese (Traditional, Smoked Salmon, Spring Onion, Blue Cheese, Sweet Thai Chili and Tangy Mustard) are Halaal-verified and certified by the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC). The ingredients and processes used at Lactalis South Africa's cheese factory also has MJC-accreditation.
Lactalis South Africa is sensitive to and respectful of the individual dietary needs of consumers of various religious backgrounds. The Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) Halaal Trust’s accreditation of the Cream Cheeses mentioned above make it fit for consumption by Muslim consumers. The company has complied with MJC-guidelines for many years. Our cream cheese ranges' ingredients and processes rigorously adhere to the MJC’s guidelines and also meet the Lactalis Group’s demanding internal quality standards.
The MJC is an organisation trusted by the Muslim community to ensure that food consumed by this community is Halaal. The MJC has been active in South Africa since 1945 and its approval for the above mentioned range of Parmalat and Président Cream Cheese is in line with universally accepted Halaal certification standards. The MJC has confirmed that all ingredients, processes and factories linked to the Cream Cheese ranges mentioned above adhere to rigorous MJC regulations and have been verified and accredited as such.
Please view MJC certification in link: https://lactalis.co.za/pieces/downloads/certificates/bonnievale-mjc-exp-31-dec-2020.pdf
2 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa, producer of the popular Melrose range, has enjoyed a long and respectful relationship with South African Muslim consumers and respects the MJC's guidelines.
The bacon-flavoured Melrose product in question has a smoky flavour and includes texturised vegetable protein that does not contain any bacon. Out of respect for Muslim preferences and guidelines the company however does not use the Halaal logo on its bacon-flavoured products.
The oversight was the result of human error and Lactalis South Africa sincerely regrets the incorrect usage of the MJC logo. Lactalis South Africa apologises for this oversight.
Lactalis South Africa has already corrected this mistake on all new packaging and no new bacon-flavoured products will erroneously be manufactured with the Halaal logo. Lactalis South Africa will also endeavour to remove the wrongly labeled products from shelves where possible.
Lactalis South Africa is a multi-national company and prides itself on adhering to multi-cultural food and other guidelines. Products with the Halaal logo allow those wanting to honour the regulations of their religion to do so.
View the MJC certificate for Melrose and other Lactalis South Africa cheeses at https://lactalis.co.za/page/about-us-sa on the CERTIFICATES section.
3 February 2020
A fresh era arrives for the South African dairy industry this year as a new player enters the local market. Lactalis South Africa is the new name for Parmalat SA and this name change came into effect on 1 February 2020.
This is a name change only and it will not impact the company’s existing range of products, brands, projects or business operations. Lactalis South Africa will remain the home of quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président and SteriStumpie, as well as Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury. These familiar brands hold strong positions across several dairy product categories, ranging from cheese, yoghurt, milk, and custard, to flavoured milk, cream, drinking yoghurt, maas, fruit beverages, butter and ice cream.
Parmalat SA has been been part of the international Lactalis family for the past nine years since the Lactalis Group bought Parmalat in 2011. The local name change to Lactalis South Africa is the final step towards fully integrating the South African business with its international parent company, a family business that has a rich history and tradition in bringing the enjoyment of dairy products into people’s lives.
Although the company name has changed to Lactalis South Africa, the existing company registration number, VAT number, banking details, site addresses, and telephone numbers remain the same.
The Lactalis Group is a family-led company guided by a passion for dairy that was founded in 1933 by André Besnier in Laval in the west of France, the heart of French dairy country. The Lactalis Group is the world’s number one dairy group with 250 production sites in 50 countries and more than 90 000 team members in 94 countries. In South Africa the international Lactalis Group legacy and knowledge now merges with local dairy know-how and passion that has provided jobs and wholesome dairy products in South Africa since the early 1900s.
Marek Warzywoda, Lactalis South Africa General Manager, says “the change of name in South Africa is an exciting step for the local dairy industry and shows that our global dairy group has confidence in the business opportunities in this region.
“We are committed to continue providing quality products under our well-known local and global brands. Lactalis South Africa will build on the many successes and hard work of those who came before us. Locally the roots of this business can be traced back to the early 1900s. This accumulated South African expertise now joins forces with a proud French family heritage also dating back to the early 1900s.”
1 April 2019
Parmalat South Africa cemented its position as a Big Cheese in the South African dairy landscape by claiming three coveted Qualité awards, 13 SA Champion accolades and 15 first prizes across dairy categories at the 2019 South African Dairy Championships.
Winning products in each class are crowned SA Champions, while a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence. The 2019 event’s 75 judges ranged from dairy technologists and cheese retailers to chefs.
The Parmalat products that claimed the prestigious Qualité mark of excellence are Président Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months), and two products made for Woolworths: Matured Gouda (10 months) and Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months). The Président cheese is made at PSA’s Bonnievale Plant, while the other two cheeses are made at its Ladismith Plant.
PSA’s SA Champion products are:
Président Brie Ready-to-Eat, Parmalat Matured Cheddar (6 months), Melrose Biltong Wedges, Steri Stumpie Plus Thick Chocolate Praline, Steri Stumpie Cream Soda, YogoFun Banana Custard Low Fat Drinking Yoghurt, and the following products made for Woolworths: Matured Gouda (10 months), Continental Extra Hard Cheese (Black Wax, 20 months), Real Vanilla Dairy Ice Cream, Soft Scoop Vanilla and Berry Flavoured Ice Cream, Matured Cheddar (4 months), Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months) and Feta Black Pepper.
Eugene Swarts, PSA’s General Manager, praised the teams involved in making Parmalat’s quality range of products and securing awards for products ranging from cheese and ice cream, to drinking yoghurt and flavoured milk. In addition, Parmalat claimed all top three prizes in the SA Dairy Champs category for Processed Cheese Single Portions with Melrose Biltong Wedges receiving the SA Champion title, and Melrose Cheddar Wedges in second and Melrose Sweetmilk Wedges in third place.
“Awards like these underline the fact that our products meet the highest standards and delight consumers. We are proud of our teams’ hard work and we salute their dedication and commitment to meeting the exceptional standards we set for ourselves.”
* Parmalat SA (Pty) Ltd.’s parent company is the French international dairy company Lactalis
8 November 2018
Parmalat SA (PSA) wowed international cheese judges and won a gold and two bronze awards at the 2018 World Cheese Awards (WCA). PSA's Gold award was for its Président 12-month Mature Cheddar, while the two Bronze medals went to Parmalat Cheddar and the Woolworths 18-month Vintage Cheddar produced by Parmalat SA.
PSA bettered its performance at this year's event after only claiming one Silver and one Bronze award last year. This was the 31st annual WCA and the 2018-event was held in Norway for the first time. The 2018 WCA event was judged by a team of 235 judges from 41 different countries, and 3472 cheeses competed for the top prize that this year went to a Gouda-style cheese made on a small farm in Norway.
Cathy Eve, PSA Marketing Executive, has welcomed the WCA accolades for the three Parmalat Cheddars, saying these outstanding international results underline the quality of Parmalat's cheese range. "It is a clear indication of the high quality of our cheese range and the dedication and expertise of our teams. Parmalat remains committed to producing high quality dairy products and we are proud to also have this acknowledged by international cheese experts."
The international accolades follow after PSA rewrote local dairy history earlier this year by claiming the prestigious Product of the Year prize for the second year running at the annual SA Dairy Championship. PSA secured the 2018 Product of the Year award for the second consecutive year for its 10-month Mature Gouda, an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. This achievement was the first of its kind for the 185-year-old event. At the 2018 SA Dairy Championship Parmalat SA triumphed across dairy classes by claiming seven Qualité* awards and an exceptional total of 15 SA Championship prizes. The SA Dairy Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world.
* The Qualité award is South Africa's only officially acknowledged symbol of outstanding dairy quality and the following seven Parmalat products now carry the much desired Qualité black and gold emblem: Président Matured Gouda 6 Months, UHT Low Fat Milk, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited Strawberry, as well as the following three cheeses produced for Woolworths: Matured Gouda 10 Months, Vintage Cheddar White, and Matured Gouda 20 Months.
6 July 2018
The lock-out at some of Parmalat SA’s (PSA) operational facilities has been terminated.
After protracted negotiations between PSA and FAWU, an agreement was reached on Friday, 6 July. This will see a return to work by all striking workers by Monday, 9 July. Chris Vermeulen, PSA’s Human Resource Executive, welcomed the agreement which he regards as a fair and reasonable outcome for both parties. The agreement provides for a 7.75% increase to employees at bargaining unit level.
The agreement ends the 9-day strike that had been accompanied by high levels of intimidation of non-striking workers and incidents of violence resulting in damage to property. Vermeulen lamented the fact that the strike occurred in the first place on a ‘no work, no pay’ basis, worsening the financial hardship of employees even further.
The strike and consequent lock-out followed when a deadlock was reached after negotiations between the parties took place over a number of weeks. PSA implemented the lock-out of less than 700 FAWU-members last week (on Wednesday, 27 June) after the union served PSA with notice of the strike on Monday, 26 June. PSA employs a total workforce of approximately 2400 employees.
Vermeulen said PSA successfully limited the impact of the strike through well-prepared contingency plans and the commitment of its non-striking workforce. Operational plans were in place to ensure that the safety of employees, contractors and customers was not negatively affected. The same applied to product supply to consumers and customers.
28 June 2018
Parmalat SA (PSA) implemented a lock-out of employees who are FAWU-members on 27 June. The lockout is effective at some of PSA’s operational facilities and commenced at midday on Wednesday 27 June. It is directed at 75% of the approximately 900 FAWU members working for PSA. PSA employs a total workforce of approximately 2400 employees. The lock-out was implemented in response to the union’s decision to embark on a strike on the 27th after giving the company 48 hours’ notice.
This strike and consequent lock-out followed when a deadlock was reached after negotiations with the union over many weeks. The process included mediation by the CCMA. PSA has described the decision to strike as “disappointing given that the parties had previously, at FAWU’s request, agreed to meet again on 29 June”.
Chris Vermeulen, PSA’s Human Resource Executive, says the company has indicated its willingness throughout the negotiation process to move on its offer if FAWU did the same. “It’s also important to note that the notice to strike was issued without the ballot process being followed in line with FAWU’s own constitution.” He confirmed that PSA has implemented contingency plans to ensure the safety of its employees, contractors and visitors. “Unfortunately the strike has already been accompanied by a high level of intimidation, preventing employees from working or returning to work and there have been incidents of violence resulting in damage to property,” he added.
“Quality however remains our product focus and we have operational plans in place to ensure that product supply to our consumers and customers is not negatively affected.”
Vermeulen says PSA is aware of the financial hardship of some of their employees. “We presented FAWU with an offer which is fair and reasonable given the current economic conditions. It’s sad that the union’s decision to not accept the offer and to embark on industrial action on a ‘no work, no pay’ basis will worsen the hardship of employees even further.”
PSA indicated it will only allow union members back on its premises once the industrial action is officially and unconditionally ended and fully abandoned by FAWU. This is in accordance with standard labour relations practise and legislation.
*At the start of the negotiations between PSA and FAWU the union demanded a 12% increase plus numerous other demands. After weeks of negotiations their demand stood at 9% (on 27 June) with a number of remaining demands, while the company’s offer stood at 7.3% plus a once-off payment of R500. PSA describes the union’s remaining other demands (including monthly incentive bonuses of R1000) as “substantial” and says it cannot be agreed to.
15 June 2018
Parmalat SA’s Yoghurt has once again been voted as the ‘Coolest Yoghurt Brand’ in the 2018 Sunday Times Generation Next youth survey, claiming this accolade for the second year running. The 2018 top performing brands were announced at the highly anticipated Sunday Times Generation Next Award ceremony that took place in Sandton on Thursday, 14 June.
Now in its 14th year, the Sunday Times Generation Next youth survey, presented in association with leading youth market specialists HDI Youth Marketeers, polls more than 12,000 youths from around the country across more than 70 categories. The survey is considered the leading barometer of what South African children, teens and young adults find ‘on-trend’ and aspirational. According to Reardon Sanderson, GM group sales and marketing at Tiso Blackstar, the survey is a great insight into how the youth perceive and attribute value to brands in a highly competitive market. “It’s always important for brands to understand how a very switched-on youth segment makes decisions, as they’ll be the income-earners of tomorrow.”
Monica Howarth, Parmalat South Africa (PSA) Marketing Manager, says the fact that Parmalat’s yoghurt range won the top yoghurt spot in the survey for the second consecutive year is testament to the company’s ongoing commitment to great quality and good taste. “It reflects the mammoth efforts of the various teams to ensure that our deliciously creamy yoghurt range continues to deliver on the overall Parmalat brand promise of great quality.” Earlier this year two PSA yoghurts - Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, and Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited – Strawberry – received Qualité awards at the annual SA Dairy Championships, accolades reserved for only a select few products.
Other Parmalat products such as Steri Stumpie, Melrose Spread and EverFreshUHT Milk also claimed spots in the top ten of their respective categories in this year’s Sunday Times Generation Next Youth survey.
6 June 2018
The quality of the products it offers to consumers is of the utmost importance to Parmalat and our entire yoghurt range is Halaal-verified and certified by the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC). The ingredients and processes used, as well as Parmalat’s factories, also have MJC-accreditation.
Parmalat is sensitive to and respectful of the individual dietary needs of consumers of various religious backgrounds. The Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) Halaal Trust’s accreditation of Parmalat yoghurts makes it fit for consumption by Muslim consumers. The company has complied with the MJC-guidelines for many years. The yoghurt range’s ingredients and processes rigorously adhere to the MJC’s guidelines and also meet Parmalat’s own demanding quality standards.
The MJC is an organisation entrusted by the Muslim community with ensuring that food consumed is Halaal. The MJC has been active in South Africa since 1945 and its approval for Parmalat’s yoghurts is in line with universally accepted Halaal certification standards. The MJC has confirmed that all Parmalat’s ingredients, processes and factories have adhered to MJC regulations and have been verified and accredited. The Council’s certificate of approval for yoghurt is also adhered to by other leading yoghurt suppliers.
26 March 2018
Parmalat SA has rewritten SA dairy history by claiming the prestigious Product of the Year prize for the second year running at the annual SA Dairy Championships. This achievement is a first of its kind for the 185-year-old event.
PSA secured the 2018 Product of the Year award for the second consecutive year for its 10-month Mature Gouda, an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. PSA triumphed across dairy classes by claiming seven Qualité awards and an exceptional total of 15 SA Championship prizes. Winning products in each class are crowned SA Champions, a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence, while only the most superior of these is named as the overall Product of the Year.
The Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of outstanding dairy quality and the following seven Parmalat products will soon be sporting the much desired Qualité black and gold emblem: Président Matured Gouda 6 Months, UHT Low Fat Milk, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited – Strawberry, as well as the following three cheeses produced for Woolworths: Matured Gouda 10 Months, Vintage Cheddar – White, and Matured Gouda 20 Months.
Cathy Eve, PSA Marketing Executive, says the team is delighted with the results. “This is the third time in nine years we have won the Product of the Year award for one our cheeses, a clear indication of the high quality of our products and the dedication and diligence of our teams. To make SA Dairy Champs history by winning Product of the Year two years in a row is an added bonus! We’re also especially proud to have secured Qualité awards for two of our Parmalat yoghurts and our Parmalat EverFresh UHT Low Fat Milk. This shows our commitment to high quality dairy products across our product portfolio.”
SA Dairy Championship chief judge and international dairy expert Kobus Mulder says that for a product to be chosen as Dairy Product of the Year in a competition of this nature is a long and difficult journey and the dream of every dairy technologist. “That the honour befalls this year’s winner of the prestigious title for the second year in a row, is exceptional. Not only is it an extraordinary performance, but also proof of sustained good manufacturing practices and quality control by the personnel of the manufacturer. Technically and gastronomically the Parmalat 10- month Mature Gouda is as close to perfection as a food product can come.”
This year’s SA Dairy Championship was contested by 83 producers who entered 945 dairy products. The Championship was first presented in 1834 and is the oldest of its kind in Africa. This year products competed for the attention of 84 judges ranging from food technologists and cheese retailers, to food bloggers and chefs.
30 November 2017
Parmalat won two prizes at the prestigious 2017 World Cheese Awards (WCA)* in London where more than 3000 cheeses from across the world were judged. Parmalat’s 20-month aged Mature Gouda made for Woolworths was awarded a silver medal, while Parmalat’s Medium Cheddar won a bronze award.
This international nod of approval for Parmalat’s Matured Gouda produced for Woolworths follows after it was also named as the South African Product of the Year at this year’s SA Dairy Championships. The cheese is an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese.
Parmalat also excelled in the rest of the 2017 SA Dairy Championship competition by winning four coveted Qualité Mark of Excellence awards and 11 SA Champion prizes. The Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world. Three of PSA’s Qualité award winners are produced at its Ladismith Plant: the Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Parmalat Matured Cheddar, and the Matured Gouda (maximum age 12 months) produced for Woolworths. The fourth PSA product claiming a Qualité award is the Woolworths Vintage Cheddar (minimum age 18 months) produced at the Parmalat Bonnievale Plant.
Commenting on the World Cheese Awards results Cathy Eve, Parmalat SA’s Marketing Executive, says “Parmalat is immensely proud of the team of cheese makers in our business who consistently produce such high quality cheeses. To win local accolades in the form of Qualité awards is very important and to have the same product recognised internationally is a testament to the high level of expertise in the South African industry.”
*This year was the 30th time the annual WCA event took place and the international entries were adjudicated by 230 judges. Cornish kern, a British cheese, was crowned as the overall World Champion Cheese.
27 March 2017
Parmalat does not compromise on food quality and safety
Parmalat SA does not release products for human consumption that pose any health risk. PSA’s procedures for product evaluation and risk assessment are robust and regularly audited by local customers and authorities, as well as international experts.
A story initially reported in Rapport newspaper on Sunday 26 March 2017 was triggered by a 2016 CCMA ruling in a case between a disgruntled employee and Parmalat South Africa (PSA). The ruling upheld the dismissal of an employee who was removed as a quality manager at a Parmalat Plant in 2014 for poor performance, including not following procedures in the identification and correction of quality issues – a critical role in any food production facility.
Milk is a natural product with quality variations. As a responsible dairy processor PSA has in place specifically designed systems to detect any quality issues as early as possible, and to assess the root causes and take necessary corrective action.
The allegations described in the Rapport story refer to events that took place in 2014. When a processing issue was identified, the rigorous system of identifying the cause and putting corrective action in place was initiated. This would also have formed an important aspect of the quality manager’s role. The source of the problem was in fact identified by an international expert that was asked to assist.
The PSA product safety system worked. It prevented any contaminated product from being released from PSA’s Bonnievale plant to any of our customers, and consumers were never at risk.
PSA is regularly audited by key customers (including retailers and other food manufacturers) and all information about production and product quality is shared openly in such relationships. PSA has not falsified any laboratory reports or deliberately withheld information with the purpose of allowing poor quality products to be distributed and sold on.
As a leading company Parmalat highly values employee engagement – a good, competent and motivated work force is vital to ensure that such a large organisation runs efficiently and everyone maintains the quality standards that make up the Parmalat brand. Job specific expertise and integrity are critical – especially in quality management positions. PSA has many checks and balances to ensure that any employee who is not satisfied with his or her treatment can escalate issues via a Tip-off Line that has been in place since 2010. In this case, the allegations of mismanagement were raised after the process of dismissal had been initiated.
No individual has ever been dismissed from PSA for whistleblowing.
Parmalat entered openly into the CCMA hearing process, knowing full well that it is in the public domain, but being of the opinion that there was nothing to hide. Parmalat does not wish to engage in any personal attack on the employee concerned – the employment issue has been dealt with through the relevant channels and the dismissal has been upheld.
PSA manufactures a wide range of high quality dairy products. The company employs about 2500 people around the country in fields ranging from processing, packing, and distribution, to sales and marketing. The business has a worldwide reputation for good manufacturing practices and high quality products. Good practices and quality products are of the utmost importance to PSA and will not be compromised at any time. It is disappointing that unfounded allegations about Parmalat product safety have found public voice and could cause unnecessary concern.
The quality of the products it offers to consumers is of the utmost importance to Parmalat and the company’s entire yoghurt range is Halaal-verified and certified by the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC). The ingredients and processes used, as well as Parmalat’s factories, also have MJC-accreditation.
Parmalat has always been sensitive to and respectful of the individual dietary needs of its consumers of various religious backgrounds and is proud of the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) Halaal Trust’s accreditation of Parmalat yoghurts, making it fit for consumption by Muslim consumers.
The MJC is an organisation entrusted by the Muslim community with ensuring that food consumed is Halaal. MJC scholars say the Council has thoroughly investigated the matter and can confidently say that whatever products are certified by the Muslim Judicial Council is Halaal, in particular the gelatin used in these foods. “We wish to reassure the community that the use of gelatin if certified by the MJC is Halaal and in line with the Ruling of the MJC Fatwa Dept. and other reputable Islamic Scholars worldwide. The issue of the use of gelatin in food products has been dealt with in detail by the MJC.”
The MJC has been active in South Africa since 1945 and its approval for Parmalat’s yoghurts is in line with universally accepted Halaal certification standards. The MJC has confirmed that all Parmalat’s ingredients, processes and factories have adhered to MJC regulations and have been verified and accredited. The Council’s certificate of approval for yoghurt is also adhered to by other leading yoghurt suppliers.
André Mahoney, Parmalat SA Marketing Executive, has confirmed that Parmalat’s yoghurts are verified and certified and says the company has complied with the MJC-guidelines for many years.
“Our ingredients and processes rigorously adhere to the MJC’s guidelines and also meet our own demanding quality standards.”
Parmalat cheese has once again showed its class, this time impressing international cheese connoisseurs with its taste and quality. The Simonsberg 6-Month Matured Gouda has been named as a Super Gold Award winner at the World Cheese Awards in Spain. The Super Gold Awards list the world’s best cheeses and the Simonsberg Gouda was one of only two South African cheeses (and the only locally-produced hard cheese) to claim this accolade. It was also the first time a Parmalat cheese won the Super Gold Award at this prestigious annual event.
The winning Simonsberg Gouda is a light creamy cheese with a milky-sweet, savoury taste, and with pleasant tastes of salt and pepper lingering in the mouth. The cheese is produced at the Parmalat SA (PSA) Ladismith Plant and is available at all good retailers.
More than 3 000 cheeses from 32 countries were entered for the 29th World Cheese Awards and 266 judges from 26 countries were tasked with choosing the select group of award-winning cheeses from the thousands of entries.
Parmalat cheeses recorded its best overall annual performance at this year’s Awards by also securing two more gold, one silver and two bronze prizes in other cheese classes. These winners are: gold – Président Brie (class 4), and Simonsberg 24-Month Matured Gouda (class 10); silver – Simonsberg 10-Month Matured Gouda (class 16), and bronze – Parmalat Mild Cheddar (class 2), and Parmalat Smoked Salmon-flavoured Cream Cheese (class 1).
Earlier this year PSA was named as the top performer at the 2016 South African Diary Championship, winning an unrivalled five Qualité and 12 SA Champion awards. André Mahoney, PSA Marketing Executive, says the Super Gold Award proves that the Parmalat cheese basket can compete with the best international cheeses. “Our focus has always been and still remains on great-tasting quality and we are proud that this is not only recognised locally, but also internationally.”
Parmalat SA emerged as the top performer at the 2016 South African Diary Championship with an unrivalled five Qualité and 12 SA Champion awards. The Championship weighed the company up against a record 85 other manufacturers and underlined Parmalat’s commitment to producing quality products.
The Qualité award is the mark of excellence for dairy products in South Africa and PSA claimed the coveted award for its Round Gouda, as well as the following products produced for Woolworths: Unsalted Butter, Ice Cream with Condiments (WW Soft Scoop Vanilla and Berry Ice Cream), Matured Gouda, and Extra Hard Cheese.
The PSA products named as SA Champions include Gouda, Matured Gouda and Gouda matured for 24 months, Cheddar, White Cheddar (both those matured for 6 months and for 12 months), Simonsberg Traditional Camembert, Président Ready-to-Eat Brie, Unsalted Butter, Garlic Butter, Melrose wedges and Ice Cream.
André Mahoney, PSA’s Marketing Executive, says Parmalat is proud of its performance against an increasing number of competitors and products.
“It’s great to see Président, one of our relatively new launches in South Africa, taking its place on the podium this year alongside Parmalat’s existing range of established product ranges. Our teams work extremely hard to ensure that we honour the quality promise we make to consumers; we not only strive to continuously improve on what we do, but we also look at innovation and new products to give consumers an even greater choice of excellent Parmalat products. Our 2016 SA Dairy Champs performances once again demonstrate that consumers and customers can rely on us to provide them with dairy products of exceptional quality.”
The 2016 Championship was adjudicated by 72 judges tasked with assessing the record 886 products entered by 86 manufacturers.
Parmalat has emerged as one of the top performers at the 2015 Qualité Awards, claiming three prestigious Qualité awards, while no less than fifteen of its products were named as SA Champions in various classes.
The Qualité mark is awarded to products of excellence and Parmalat’s awards are for Parmalat’s Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese, Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese and the Matured (18 months old) White Cheddar Parmalat produces for Woolworths.
The products named as SA Champions are winners in each of the 95 classes in the various categories that include cheese, butter, yoghurt, ice cream, and flavoured milk. Parmalat claimed first prizes for the following products:
Parmalat Round Gouda; Simonsberg Matured Gouda; Parmalat Garlic & Parsley Butter; Parmalat Processed Cheddar Spread; Simonsberg Mozzarella portions; Simonsberg Feta with Black Pepper; Parmalat Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese; Simonsberg Medium Fat Smoked Ham Cream Cheese; Royalty Tin Roof Dairy Ice cream, and Royalty Vanilla Dairy Ice Cream, as well as all the following products produced for Woolworths – Unsalted Butter (250g); Plain Feta; White Cheddar (12 months); Matured White Cheddar (18 months) and Matured White Cheddar (12 months).
Parmalat dominated in the category for Cream Cheese with Condiments with the Parmalat Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese claiming first place and Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese placed second. Qualité status is usually only awarded to the winner of a specific class, but in this case the judges decided that both the first and second place products would be given a Qualité award of excellence.
André Mahoney, Parmalat SA Marketing Executive, says the various awards have underlined the company’s commitment to quality. “The competition is tougher each year with various new players emerging. It’s great to see the greater dairy industry growing and we are proud to consistently be one of the top performers. This is proof that our team continues to invest mammoth effort and expertise in our range of products. Quality remains the main pillar of our brand promise to consumers.”
A record number of 879 entries from 80 producers competed for honours in this year’s SA Dairy Championship, the 181st time the dairy industry awards were presented. 61 Judges, consisting of sensory evaluators, manufacturers, chefs and food writers judged the entries earlier this year. The cheese category was the largest by far, taking up more than half of the entries for this year’s awards.
The event was organised by Agri-Expo and Johan Ehlers, CEO of Agri-Expo, says the record number of entries is a clear indication of the high level of confidence dairy producers have in the championships. “We were particularly impressed with the 17% increase in producer participation, as it shows a growing need to benchmark their products at a national standard.”
Parmalat South Africa is continuing its investigation into the cause of the production problems that resulted in the full voluntary recall of a small batch of PureJoy 200ml Apple Juice earlier this week. The national recall affects the 200ml UHT apple juice with the best before (expiration) date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 (E 14.12.15).
Since announcing the recall, Parmalat has proactively notified all the necessary authorities of its actions and provided all information requested. The company also continues to communicate with all the relevant the authorities. Parmalat spokesperson André Mahoney says their main objective “remains ensuring that we do everything in our power to communicate this message to consumers, and to make sure we are taking all possible action to recover as much of the product as possible.
“We are on track with that and the message has already gone out in print and digital media, as well as on radio and television. We’ve had a tremendous response from consumers and are still busy collecting the affected packs from people who purchased it before sales of the batch was restricted.”
Parmalat instituted the recall after following up two consumer complaints about the 200ml juice. The company’s investigation showed that a small batch, about 300 packs, of PureJoy Apple Juice contained traces of sodium hydroxide, also known as caustic soda.
Ingestion of sodium hydroxide can cause spontaneous vomiting, chest and/or abdominal pain, and/or difficulty swallowing, with excessive production of saliva. People can respond differently and consumers who drank the affected 200ml juice and have experienced these symptoms, should please consider seeking medical advice.
Anyone who purchased the 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice with the best before (expiration) date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 (E 14.12.15) are urged to phone 0860 66 44 22 or mail parmalat@121group.co.za for immediate collection and refund.
Mr Mahoney has assured the public that all Parmalat’s other products are safe to consume. “This issue aside, all PureJoy products, including 200ml apple juice produced on other dates and all other flavours are safe to consume. No other Parmalat products, including no other PureJoy Juice variants, have been affected. All of our other products continue to have the high quality standards that consumers have come to expect from Parmalat.”
A thorough investigation of the production records has enabled Parmalat to isolate the problem to a production time window of less than five minutes. At that time the machine initiated an unscheduled cleaning cycle, releasing a small quantity of sodium hydroxide into the line. The production line immediately reverted to normal process conditions, hence the very short window. The cause of this malfunction is still under investigation.
*Sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) is used to clean and sterilise the production lines and there are no long term side effects to this chemical. The symptoms mentioned earlier usually occur immediately in the mouth and throat and may cause subsequent abdominal discomfort.
Full product details:
Parmalat 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice is packaged in a green-coloured 200ml UHT carton with straw attached, and is marked as follows:
+ Parmalat (brand); PureJoy Juice (product)
+ Apple (flavour); 200ml (pack size)
+ Information in Best Before box on top of pack:
P 14.12.14 (production date) AND P 15.12.14
E 14.12.15 (expiry date) AND E 15.12.15
ZA 5/19 (factory code).
Parmalat South Africa has announced the voluntary recall of a batch of 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice.
To date two complaints have been confirmed in connection with this incident. Quality is the main pillar of Parmalat’s brand promise to consumers and as a result, any possible quality and safety problems receive immediate and urgent attention.
The 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice complaints were followed up and the products in question were recovered for investigation. Parmalat’s investigation confirmed the products had been contaminated with cleaning chemicals, making it unfit for consumption.
Ingestion of sodium hydroxide can cause spontaneous vomiting, chest and/or abdominal pain, and/or difficulty swallowing with excessive production of saliva. People can respond differently, if you experience these symptoms please consider seeking medical advice.
As a precautionary measure, all 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice products with an expiry date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 have subsequently been removed from shelf in the majority of retail and wholesale stores.
Parmalat spokesperson André Mahoney says initial investigations point towards a factory problem that resulted in the release of a small number of packs that had been contaminated with cleaning chemicals. “All the unsold affected products have already been recalled from our distribution system, as well as, where possible, from the stores to which it had been distributed. Our records indicate that the distribution for primary sale was most likely limited to the Western Cape, but we recognise that consumers or distributors could have taken the product into other areas.”
In addition, a thorough investigation of production records has enabled Parmalat to isolate the problem to a production time window of less than five minutes. Parmalat is continuing its investigation while following the voluntary recall process.
Consumers who have purchased the 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice with the best before (expiration) date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 (E 14.12.15 AND 15.12.15) are urged to phone 0860 66 44 22 or mail parmalat@121group.co.za for immediate collection and refund.
The voluntary recall only pertains to 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice. No other Parmalat products or code dates are affected by this recall.
Full product details:
Parmalat 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice is packaged in a green-coloured 200ml UHT carton with straw attached, and is marked as follows:
- Parmalat (brand)
- PureJoy Juice (product)
- Apple (flavour)
- 200ml (pack size)
- Information in Best Before box on top of pack:
P 14.12.14 (production date) AND P 15.12.14
E 14.12.15 (expiry date) AND E 15.12.15
ZA 5/19 (factory code)
Parmalat South Africa has announced the voluntary recall of a batch of 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice.
To date two complaints have been confirmed in connection with this incident. Quality is the main pillar of Parmalat’s brand promise to consumers and as a result, any possible quality and safety problems receive immediate and urgent attention.
The 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice complaints were followed up and the products in question were recovered for investigation. Parmalat’s investigation confirmed the products had been contaminated with cleaning chemicals, making it unfit for consumption.
As a precautionary measure, all 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice products with an expiry date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 have subsequently been removed from shelf in the majority of retail and wholesale stores.
Parmalat spokesperson André Mahoney says initial investigations point towards a factory problem that resulted in the release of a small number of packs that had been contaminated with cleaning chemicals. “All the unsold affected products have already been recalled from our distribution system, as well as, where possible, from the stores to which it had been distributed. Our records indicate that the distribution for primary sale was most likely limited to the Western Cape, but we recognise that consumers or distributors could have taken the product into other areas.”
In addition, a thorough investigation of production records has enabled Parmalat to isolate the problem to a production time window of less than five minutes. Parmalat is continuing its investigation while following the voluntary recall process.
Consumers who have purchased the 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice with the best before (expiration) date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 (E 14.12.15 AND 15.12.15) are urged to phone 0860 66 44 22 or mail parmalat@121group.co.za for immediate collection and refund.
The voluntary recall only pertains to 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice. No other Parmalat products or code dates are affected by this recall.
Full product details:
Parmalat 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice is packaged in a green-coloured 200ml UHT carton with straw attached, and is marked as follows:
- Parmalat (brand)
- PureJoy Juice (product)
- Apple (flavour)
- 200ml (pack size)
- Information in Best Before box on top of pack:
P 14.12.14 (production date) AND P 15.12.14
E 14.12.15 (expiry date) AND E 15.12.15
ZA 5/19 (factory code)
Parmalat Cheese has won the TGI Icon Brand award for the Cheese Category for the second year running. This year’s award in this prestigious annual South African TGI Icon Brands benchmarking survey went to Parmalat Processed Cheese.
Earlier this year Parmalat’s quality products also racked up yet another first-class performance at the 2014 SA Dairy Championship, claiming an unbeatable 13 SA Championship awards as well as a coveted Qualité mark of excellence. The accolades are also testament to Parmalat’s commitment towards producing quality dairy products.
Yumna Frizlar, Senior Brand Manager, says the ICON Brand Survey by TGI is “the largest of its kind in South Africa, 19 sectors, hundreds of product categories and thousands of brands are included in the measurement.”
Parmalat’s quality products racked up yet another first-class performance at the 2014 SA Dairy Championship, claiming an unbeatable 13 SA Championship awards for a variety of cheeses, yoghurt and butter, as well as a coveted Qualité mark of excellence. Parmalat’s excellent annual performance at these prestigious awards is testament to its commitment towards producing innovative and quality dairy products.
The SA Dairy Championship was presented for the 180th time this year and Parmalat competed against 67 other producers and a total of 821 products in the various competition categories. The Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world.
The Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of exceptional dairy quality and Parmalat claimed one for its Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese.
Parmalat was the overall top performer in the SA Championship division with no less than 13 champions. The 13 Parmalat SA Champion products are:
Simonsberg Vintage Cheddar, Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Bonnita Matured Cheddar, Simonsberg Extra Matured Cheddar, Simonsberg Ready-to-eat Camembert, Simonsberg Cambrieni, Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese, Melrose Full Cream Cheddar Flavoured Cheese Spread, Melrose Full Cream Sweetmilk Cheese Spread (portions), Melrose Sweetmilk Cheese Slices, Fabulite Fat Free Plain Yoghurt, as well as the Parmalat-produced Woolworths Unsalted Butter 250g and Woolworths Mild Cheddar.
Parmalat SA’s Marketing Executive, André Mahoney, says Parmalat’s lucky 13 SA Champions and Qualité award are the end-result of the entire team’s commitment to excellence and being the country’s most innovative dairy company. “Our competition ups their game every year and an increasing number of smaller boutique producers also join the overall pool, yet Parmalat remains a constant top performer. We are proud of our people and our products and we remain committed to giving consumers quality and great taste.”
The internationally experienced cheese judge, Ulf Mortensen, says the general level of quality of the entries has improved since he last judged at the SA Dairy Championships in 2012. “These dairy sector awards remain at the forefront of industry recognition and are a worthy example of what other industries should try to emulate to foster innovation".
Parmalat SA prides itself on the company’s focus on quality and the superiority of the milk it procures is therefore of the utmost performance. At its 2013 Supplier Quality Award function held recently, Parmalat rewarded 15 of its milk producers with cash prizes to acknowledge the top quality of the milk they provide to Parmalat across South Africa.
The overall winner who received R50 000 in prize money was Pieter van Rensburg of the farm Voorrechtvlei in the Swellendam district. Pieter has been a Parmalat milk supplier for more than two decades and farms with Jerseys.
Voorrechtvlei’s milk has an average bacterial level of less than 10 000 and scored full marks on Parmalat’s Milk Quality Scorecard, used to judge milk procured from January to December for the specific year. Other aspects taken into account for the Scorecard include the volume of milk, levels of butterfat and protein and the somatic cell count. In addition, the Scorecard also takes factors such as seasonality and duration of supply into account.
Berlo Coetsee, Parmalat’s Head: Milk Procurement, said producers like these helped to give the company a competitive edge in the market. “We have seen huge quality improvements in recent years, there has been enormous progress. In the long run, companies that have secured their quality will do better than others.”
The following 14 milk producers also received cash prizes for the exceptional quality of the milk they deliver to Parmalat: Louis Giliomee, Kragga near Heidelberg; Daan Janse van Rensburg, Spekboom in the Alexandria district; Gerhard Janse van Rensburg, Blenheim in the Alexandria district; Jannie de Kock, Hartebeesrivier Landgoed, Caledon; Pieter Groenewald, Glen Etive, Heidelberg; Pieter Rademan, Hooggeleë, Heidelberg; Hennie Eksteen, Napkysmond Boerdery, Swellendam; Thinus Giliomee, Bloemendal, Heidelberg; Deon Malherbe, Eselfontein, Ceres; Jan Schoonwinkel, Kluitjieskraal, Swellendam; Pieter Crous, Kluitjieskraal, Swellendam; Hennie Rall, Klein Tradouw, Barrydale; Japie de Kock, Sandfontein, Greyton, and Gordon Robertson, Fernbank, Knysna.
Parmalat CEO Louise Cooke announced the winners in Stellenbosch and praised the milk producers for their role in Parmalat’s value chain of quality. She said the company’s major quality accolades the past year – including being the top performer at the 2013 SA Dairy Championships and being named as Cheese Category winner in the prestigious annual South African TGI Icon Brands benchmarking survey – are also testament to the company’s exceptional milk producers.
South Africans choose Parmalat as top cheese - 22 July 2013
Say cheese and South Africans do really think of one single quality brand: Parmalat. Parmalat’s popularity in the cheese market was underlined again when it was named as the 2013/2014 Cheese Category Winner in the prestigious annual South African TGI Icon Brands benchmarking survey*.
The winners of the 2013 survey were announced in Johannesburg last week and Parmalat Cheese’s Category Winner accolade means the brand attained the highest overall score in this category.
This follows hot on the heels of Parmalat’s sterling performance at the recent 2013 SA Dairy Championships where the dairy company emerged as the overall top performer for the third consecutive year by winning an incredible 16 SA Championship first prizes and three coveted Qualité awards. The annual Dairy Championships is the benchmark for local dairy products and the Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of exceptional dairy quality.
Ryk Coetzee, Marketing Manager: Cheese, says Parmalat’s top position in the Icon Brand Cheese Category underlines the overall focus on quality of Parmalat’s wide range of cheese products, ranging from matured cheeses, everyday cheese and grated cheese, to spreads and cheese slices.
“We know South Africans love and respect our brand, but our top position in the Cheese Category also proves that they use and are loyal to our cheese brand, a vote of confidence we’re immensely proud of. Our commitment to quality remains Parmalat’s single most important production guideline and we thank South African consumers for their continued support.”
The 2013 TGI survey targeted 15000 consumers, representing more than 20 million adult South African consumers. Data was collected about more than 560 product categories, while 8000+ brands are included in the measurement.
*The TGI (Target Group Index) Icon Brands survey data was weighted using STATS SA’s population estimates. Enumerate Area sampling design was employed and the universe includes all communities with more than 8000 inhabitants, while the participants are older than 15. The TGI data collection partner is Ask Afrika, known for their total commitment to data integrity and excellence.
Parmalat’s commitment to quality once again got the nod at this year’s South African Dairy Championships. The annual event is the benchmark for local dairy products and Parmalat dominated it, emerging as the overall top performer for the third consecutive year by winning an incredible 16 SA Championship first prizes and three coveted Qualité awards.
A mere 12 products were honoured with the Qualité mark of excellence this year, compared to 26 in 2012. Parmalat’s top performance in this category was for its Simonsberg Mature Gouda, as well as the Mild Cheddar (White) and Salted Butter produced for Woolworths.
Lactalis South Africa is the new name for Parmalat SA. The name change came into effect on 1 February 2020.
This is a name change only and Lactalis SA remains home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président, SteriStumpie, Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury. These familiar brands hold strong positions across several dairy product categories, ranging from cheese, yoghurt, milk, and custard, to flavoured milk, cream, drinking yoghurt, maas, fruit beverages, butter and ice cream.
The Lactalis Group is a family-led company guided by a passion for dairy that was founded in 1933 by André Besnier in Laval in the west of France, the heart of French dairy country. Parmalat SA had been part of the international Lactalis family group since the Lactalis Group acquired a majority share in Parmalat SpA in 2011.
Lactalis South Africa is the new name for Parmalat SA. The name change came into effect on 1 February 2020.
This is a name change only and Lactalis SA remains home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président, SteriStumpie, Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury. These familiar brands hold strong positions across several dairy product categories, ranging from cheese, yoghurt, milk, and custard, to flavoured milk, cream, drinking yoghurt, maas, fruit beverages, butter and ice cream.
The Lactalis Group is a family-led company guided by a passion for dairy that was founded in 1933 by André Besnier in Laval in the west of France, the heart of French dairy country. Parmalat SA had been part of the international Lactalis family group since the Lactalis Group acquired a majority share in Parmalat SpA in 2011.
The Lactalis Group took 100% control in 2019 and the local name change to Lactalis South Africa was the final step towards fully integrating the South African business with its international parent company that has a rich history and tradition in bringing the enjoyment of dairy products into people’s lives.
The Lactalis Group is the world’s number one dairy group with 250 production sites in 50 countries and more than 90 000 team members in 94 countries. In South Africa the international Lactalis Group legacy and knowledge merges with local dairy know-how passion that has provided jobs and wholesome dairy products in South Africa since the early 1900s.
Our brands include award-winning cheeses under the Parmalat, Galbani, Président and Melrose brands, iconic flavoured milks such as Steri Stumpie, a range of creamy yoghurts and long life milks, butter, ice cream, cream and fruit juice. Lactalis South Africa also distributes ranges of milk specially formulated for children, and for people who are lactose intolerant.
Lactalis South Africa's corporate values are based on the following three core principles: Ambition, Engagement with Simplicity.
Ambition refers to continuously improving the way we do our work, setting high goals and striving for excellent performance. In terms of Engagement the company focuses on accountability, loyalty, tenacity and entrepreneurship, while Lactalis SA strives towards Simplicity in the way we go about our business and to ensure our business methods and systems are accessible, transparent and pragmatic.
27 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa, the new player in the South African dairy landscape, has announced its entry to the local market with a bang by claiming the prestigious South African Dairy Championships Product of the Year prize for its Président Extra Mature Cheddar. This is the third time the past five years the company – previously known as Parmalat SA – has claimed this top South African dairy industry prize.
In addition Lactalis South Africa (LSA) also claimed 11 SA Champion accolades and three Qualité awards at the 2020 South African Dairy Championships. The Qualité mark of excellence is only given to the crème de la crème of the entries. LSA won Qualité awards for the following products: Président Extra Mature Cheddar (a full rounded cheese with a sweet, nutty profile that melts in the mouth) and two products made for Woolworths: Extra Mature White Cheddar and Mature Gouda.
Lactalis South Africa is home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président and Steri Stumpie, as well as Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury.
“This is the third time in five years we have won the Product of the Year award for one of our cheeses,” says Marek Warzywoda, General Manager: LSA. “I am so proud of the LSA team. It is a clear indication of how high the quality of our products is and how dedicated and superb our teams are. We would like to thank Agri-Expo for another fantastic and well-organised competition and for upholding such high standards for the local dairy industry.
“At LSA our teams work extremely hard to ensure our products remain excellent and awards (particularly the Product of the Year accolades of the past few years) are such incredible testaments to their ongoing ambition to deliver quality products. For our entire team this is a ray of welcome good news amidst the unprecedented challenges we all face due to the Corona-19 pandemic. I urge everyone to stay safe and stay home during these difficult times.”
This year’s award ceremony of the annual SA Dairy Championships, the largest dairy competition in Africa, was presented as a virtual event for the first time in its 187th anniversary in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 event included entries from 74 manufacturers who entered 975 products in 100 different dairy classes.
* LSA is part of the international Lactalis Group.
1 April 2019
Parmalat South Africa cemented its position as a Big Cheese in the South African dairy landscape by claiming three coveted Qualité awards, 13 SA Champion accolades and 15 first prizes across dairy categories at the 2019 South African Dairy Championships.
Winning products in each class are crowned SA Champions, while a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence. The 2019 event’s 75 judges ranged from dairy technologists and cheese retailers to chefs.
The Parmalat products that claimed the prestigious Qualité mark of excellence are Président Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months), and two products made for Woolworths: Matured Gouda (10 months) and Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months). The Président cheese is made at PSA’s Bonnievale Plant, while the other two cheeses are made at its Ladismith Plant.
PSA’s SA Champion products are:
Président Brie Ready-to-Eat, Parmalat Matured Cheddar (6 months), Melrose Biltong Wedges, Steri Stumpie Plus Thick Chocolate Praline, Steri Stumpie Cream Soda, YogoFun Banana Custard Low Fat Drinking Yoghurt, and the following products made for Woolworths: Matured Gouda (10 months), Continental Extra Hard Cheese (Black Wax, 20 months), Real Vanilla Dairy Ice Cream, Soft Scoop Vanilla and Berry Flavoured Ice Cream, Matured Cheddar (4 months), Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months) and Feta Black Pepper.
Eugene Swarts, PSA’s General Manager, praised the teams involved in making Parmalat’s quality range of products and securing awards for products ranging from cheese and ice cream, to drinking yoghurt and flavoured milk. In addition, Parmalat claimed all top three prizes in the SA Dairy Champs category for Processed Cheese Single Portions with Melrose Biltong Wedges receiving the SA Champion title, and Melrose Cheddar Wedges in second and Melrose Sweetmilk Wedges in third place.
“Awards like these underline the fact that our products meet the highest standards and delight consumers. We are proud of our teams’ hard work and we salute their dedication and commitment to meeting the exceptional standards we set for ourselves.”
* Parmalat SA (Pty) Ltd.’s parent company is the French international dairy company Lactalis
8 November 2018
Parmalat SA (PSA) wowed international cheese judges and won a gold and two bronze awards at the 2018 World Cheese Awards (WCA). PSA's Gold award was for its Président 12-month Mature Cheddar, while the two Bronze medals went to Parmalat Cheddar and the Woolworths 18-month Vintage Cheddar produced by Parmalat SA.
PSA bettered its performance at this year's event after only claiming one Silver and one Bronze award last year. This was the 31st annual WCA and the 2018-event was held in Norway for the first time. The 2018 WCA event was judged by a team of 235 judges from 41 different countries, and 3472 cheeses competed for the top prize that this year went to a Gouda-style cheese made on a small farm in Norway.
Cathy Eve, PSA Marketing Executive, has welcomed the WCA accolades for the three Parmalat Cheddars, saying these outstanding international results underline the quality of Parmalat's cheese range. "It is a clear indication of the high quality of our cheese range and the dedication and expertise of our teams. Parmalat remains committed to producing high quality dairy products and we are proud to also have this acknowledged by international cheese experts."
The international accolades follow after PSA rewrote local dairy history earlier this year by claiming the prestigious Product of the Year prize for the second year running at the annual SA Dairy Championship. PSA secured the 2018 Product of the Year award for the second consecutive year for its 10-month Mature Gouda, an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. This achievement was the first of its kind for the 185-year-old event. At the 2018 SA Dairy Championship Parmalat SA triumphed across dairy classes by claiming seven Qualité* awards and an exceptional total of 15 SA Championship prizes. The SA Dairy Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world.
* The Qualité award is South Africa's only officially acknowledged symbol of outstanding dairy quality and the following seven Parmalat products now carry the much desired Qualité black and gold emblem: Président Matured Gouda 6 Months, UHT Low Fat Milk, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited Strawberry, as well as the following three cheeses produced for Woolworths: Matured Gouda 10 Months, Vintage Cheddar White, and Matured Gouda 20 Months.
26 March 2018
Parmalat SA has rewritten SA dairy history by claiming the prestigious Product of the Year prize for the second year running at the annual SA Dairy Championships. This achievement is a first of its kind for the 185-year-old event.
PSA secured the 2018 Product of the Year award for the second consecutive year for its 10-month Mature Gouda, an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. PSA triumphed across dairy classes by claiming seven Qualité awards and an exceptional total of 15 SA Championship prizes. Winning products in each class are crowned SA Champions, a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence, while only the most superior of these is named as the overall Product of the Year.
The Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of outstanding dairy quality and the following seven Parmalat products will soon be sporting the much desired Qualité black and gold emblem: Président Matured Gouda 6 Months, UHT Low Fat Milk, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited – Strawberry, as well as the following three cheeses produced for Woolworths: Matured Gouda 10 Months, Vintage Cheddar – White, and Matured Gouda 20 Months.
Cathy Eve, PSA Marketing Executive, says the team is delighted with the results. “This is the third time in nine years we have won the Product of the Year award for one our cheeses, a clear indication of the high quality of our products and the dedication and diligence of our teams. To make SA Dairy Champs history by winning Product of the Year two years in a row is an added bonus! We’re also especially proud to have secured Qualité awards for two of our Parmalat yoghurts and our Parmalat EverFresh UHT Low Fat Milk. This shows our commitment to high quality dairy products across our product portfolio.”
SA Dairy Championship chief judge and international dairy expert Kobus Mulder says that for a product to be chosen as Dairy Product of the Year in a competition of this nature is a long and difficult journey and the dream of every dairy technologist. “That the honour befalls this year’s winner of the prestigious title for the second year in a row, is exceptional. Not only is it an extraordinary performance, but also proof of sustained good manufacturing practices and quality control by the personnel of the manufacturer. Technically and gastronomically the Parmalat 10- month Mature Gouda is as close to perfection as a food product can come.”
This year’s SA Dairy Championship was contested by 83 producers who entered 945 dairy products. The Championship was first presented in 1834 and is the oldest of its kind in Africa. This year products competed for the attention of 84 judges ranging from food technologists and cheese retailers, to food bloggers and chefs.
30 November 2017
Parmalat won two prizes at the prestigious 2017 World Cheese Awards (WCA)* in London where more than 3000 cheeses from across the world were judged. Parmalat’s 20-month aged Mature Gouda made for Woolworths was awarded a silver medal, while Parmalat’s Medium Cheddar won a bronze award.
This international nod of approval for Parmalat’s Matured Gouda produced for Woolworths follows after it was also named as the South African Product of the Year at this year’s SA Dairy Championships. The cheese is an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese.
Parmalat also excelled in the rest of the 2017 SA Dairy Championship competition by winning four coveted Qualité Mark of Excellence awards and 11 SA Champion prizes. The Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world. Three of PSA’s Qualité award winners are produced at its Ladismith Plant: the Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Parmalat Matured Cheddar, and the Matured Gouda (maximum age 12 months) produced for Woolworths. The fourth PSA product claiming a Qualité award is the Woolworths Vintage Cheddar (minimum age 18 months) produced at the Parmalat Bonnievale Plant.
Commenting on the World Cheese Awards results Cathy Eve, Parmalat SA’s Marketing Executive, says “Parmalat is immensely proud of the team of cheese makers in our business who consistently produce such high quality cheeses. To win local accolades in the form of Qualité awards is very important and to have the same product recognised internationally is a testament to the high level of expertise in the South African industry.”
*This year was the 30th time the annual WCA event took place and the international entries were adjudicated by 230 judges. Cornish kern, a British cheese, was crowned as the overall World Champion Cheese.
20 March 2017
Parmalat SA (PSA) has asserted its position as the South African dairy industry’s big cheese by claiming the top prize at the 2017 SA Dairy Championships. PSA collected the Product of the Year award for its Matured Gouda (10 months), an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. Parmalat also excelled in the rest of the 2017 competition by winning four coveted Qualité Mark of Excellence awards and 11 SA Champion prizes.
This year’s Championship was contested by 83 producers with 854 products competing in 102 classes. Winning products are crowned SA Champions and only a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence, while the most superior of these is named the Product of the Year.
Three of PSA’s Qualité award winners are produced at its Ladismith Plant: the Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Parmalat Matured Cheddar, and the Matured Gouda (maximum age 12 months) produced for Woolworths. The fourth PSA product claiming a Qualité award is the Woolworths Vintage Cheddar (minimum age 18 months) produced at the Parmalat Bonnievale Plant.
Parmalat’s 11 SA Champion prizes are for the following products: Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Parmalat Matured Cheddar, Woolworths Vintage Cheddar produced by PSA, Simonsberg Camembert (Traditional), Président Brie (Ready-to-eat), Simonsberg Brie (Cambrieni), Simonsberg Feta with Herbs, Simonsberg Blue-Veined Cheese (Creamy Blue), Melrose Full Cream Bacon Spread, Melrose IWS Cheddar Slices, and Parmalat Low Fat Chunky Cottage Cheese.
Cathy Eve, PSA’s Marketing Executive, says the team is thrilled about this year’s SA Dairy Championships performance.
“This is the second time in eight years we have won a Product of the Year award; the previous one was in 2009 for an Extra Matured Cheddar produced for Woolworths. Our brand is built on the promise of consistent quality and winning these sought-after cheese awards is not only an immense
honour for Parmalat SA, but it is also validation for the continuous hard work by our various teams to ensure our range of cheeses maintains its exacting quality standards.”
Kobus Mulder, Chief Judge for the SA Dairy Championships and international dairy expert, says the process of determining the Dairy Product of the Year from such diverse classes as ice cream and butter, or cottage cheese and sheep’s milk cheese, is no easy feat. “Agri-Expo instituted a new procedure this year – all the Qualité winners are lined up and evaluated to determine the most superior dairy product from amongst these exceptional products. In previous years the product with the highest overall score was awarded this honour.”
Parmalat cheese has once again showed its class, this time impressing international cheese connoisseurs with its taste and quality. The Simonsberg 6-Month Matured Gouda has been named as a Super Gold Award winner at the World Cheese Awards in Spain. The Super Gold Awards list the world’s best cheeses and the Simonsberg Gouda was one of only two South African cheeses (and the only locally-produced hard cheese) to claim this accolade. It was also the first time a Parmalat cheese won the Super Gold Award at this prestigious annual event.
The winning Simonsberg Gouda is a light creamy cheese with a milky-sweet, savoury taste, and with pleasant tastes of salt and pepper lingering in the mouth. The cheese is produced at the Parmalat SA (PSA) Ladismith Plant and is available at all good retailers.
More than 3 000 cheeses from 32 countries were entered for the 29th World Cheese Awards and 266 judges from 26 countries were tasked with choosing the select group of award-winning cheeses from the thousands of entries.
Parmalat cheeses recorded its best overall annual performance at this year’s Awards by also securing two more gold, one silver and two bronze prizes in other cheese classes. These winners are: gold – Président Brie (class 4), and Simonsberg 24-Month Matured Gouda (class 10); silver – Simonsberg 10-Month Matured Gouda (class 16), and bronze – Parmalat Mild Cheddar (class 2), and Parmalat Smoked Salmon-flavoured Cream Cheese (class 1).
Earlier this year PSA was named as the top performer at the 2016 South African Diary Championship, winning an unrivalled five Qualité and 12 SA Champion awards. André Mahoney, PSA Marketing Executive, says the Super Gold Award proves that the Parmalat cheese basket can compete with the best international cheeses. “Our focus has always been and still remains on great-tasting quality and we are proud that this is not only recognised locally, but also internationally.”
PSA announced in September that its entire Simonsberg cheese range will be rebranded as Président during the coming year. The cheese range’s name will change, but the taste and quality SA consumers love and appreciate, will remain unchanged. The full new-named range, featuring both Simonsberg and Président on-pack branding, is already on shelf. Président, one of the world’s leading cheese brands, was founded in 1968 in France. Today it is sold in over 147 countries and globally produced in more than 100 factories. Président will now share its cheese-making passion and know-how as it pairs with Simonsberg, a Parmalat-owned brand that is similarly rich in heritage and tradition.
Parmalat SA emerged as the top performer at the 2016 South African Diary Championship with an unrivalled five Qualité and 12 SA Champion awards. The Championship weighed the company up against a record 85 other manufacturers and underlined Parmalat’s commitment to producing quality products.
The Qualité award is the mark of excellence for dairy products in South Africa and PSA claimed the coveted award for its Round Gouda, as well as the following products produced for Woolworths: Unsalted Butter, Ice Cream with Condiments (WW Soft Scoop Vanilla and Berry Ice Cream), Matured Gouda, and Extra Hard Cheese.
The PSA products named as SA Champions include Gouda, Matured Gouda and Gouda matured for 24 months, Cheddar, White Cheddar (both those matured for 6 months and for 12 months), Simonsberg Traditional Camembert, Président Ready-to-Eat Brie, Unsalted Butter, Garlic Butter, Melrose wedges and Ice Cream.
André Mahoney, PSA’s Marketing Executive, says Parmalat is proud of its performance against an increasing number of competitors and products.
“It’s great to see Président, one of our relatively new launches in South Africa, taking its place on the podium this year alongside Parmalat’s existing range of established product ranges. Our teams work extremely hard to ensure that we honour the quality promise we make to consumers; we not only strive to continuously improve on what we do, but we also look at innovation and new products to give consumers an even greater choice of excellent Parmalat products. Our 2016 SA Dairy Champs performances once again demonstrate that consumers and customers can rely on us to provide them with dairy products of exceptional quality.”
The 2016 Championship was adjudicated by 72 judges tasked with assessing the record 886 products entered by 86 manufacturers.
Parmalat’s Melrose Cheese team received the World Packaging Organisation (WPO) Packaging Excellence award at a glittering event in Milan, Italy in August 2015. The WPO awards ceremony formed part of the international IPACK-IMA 2015 expo.
This was the proudly South African Melrose Wedges tub’s second international award: towards the end of last year the same Melrose packaging design was named as general winner of the AfriStar Trophy for Best Overall Packaging at the inaugural AfriStar Awards in Nairobi, Kenya. The 200g tub was also declared the winner in three other AfriStar categories: Best in Plastic, Best in Food and Best in Sustainability. The Melrose Cheese Wedges tub was developed by PSA in conjunction with Dairypack Tubs.
Parmalat has emerged as one of the top performers at the 2015 Qualité Awards, claiming three prestigious Qualité awards, while no less than fifteen of its products were named as SA Champions in various classes.
The Qualité mark is awarded to products of excellence and Parmalat’s awards are for Parmalat’s Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese, Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese and the Matured (18 months old) White Cheddar Parmalat produces for Woolworths.
The products named as SA Champions are winners in each of the 95 classes in the various categories that include cheese, butter, yoghurt, ice cream, and flavoured milk. Parmalat claimed first prizes for the following products:
Parmalat Round Gouda; Simonsberg Matured Gouda; Parmalat Garlic & Parsley Butter; Parmalat Processed Cheddar Spread; Simonsberg Mozzarella portions; Simonsberg Feta with Black Pepper; Parmalat Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese; Simonsberg Medium Fat Smoked Ham Cream Cheese; Royalty Tin Roof Dairy Ice cream, and Royalty Vanilla Dairy Ice Cream, as well as all the following products produced for Woolworths – Unsalted Butter (250g); Plain Feta; White Cheddar (12 months); Matured White Cheddar (18 months) and Matured White Cheddar (12 months).
Parmalat dominated in the category for Cream Cheese with Condiments with the Parmalat Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese claiming first place and Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese placed second. Qualité status is usually only awarded to the winner of a specific class, but in this case the judges decided that both the first and second place products would be given a Qualité award of excellence.
Parmalat South Africa (PSA) secured three awards in the 2014 World Cheese Awards, underlining its commitment to producing quality cheeses that can compete with the best of the rest of the world.
Parmalat’s entries were judged along with some 2700 other cheeses from 30 countries around the globe at this annual event.
The PSA winning cheeses are:
Silver medal for Parmalat Cheddar;
Bronze medal for Simonsberg Camembert ready-to-eat, and a
Bronze medal for Simonsberg Feta with Black Pepper.
The Melrose Cheese Wedges tub, developed by Parmalat SA in conjunction with Dairypack Tubs, was named as general winner of the AfriStar Trophy for Best Overall Packaging at the inaugural AfriStar Awards recently hosted in Nairobi, Kenya. The 200g tub was also declared the winner in three other separate categories: Best in Plastic, Best in Food and Best in Sustainability.
The new Wedges compact tub achieved a significant weight reduction compared with the previous version, while simultaneously improving branding on pack through advanced in-mould labelling (IML). The IML on parallel sides of the tub required precision equipment for accurate positioning of the label to align perfectly with the tamper tab to match the design on the label and avoid obscuring the breathing holes on the lid. With the nutritional information reverse-printed on the lid, the bottom is left unlabelled, allowing consumers to view the product clearly.
The judging panel said the Melrose tub “looks good and it works. The pack has a positive environmental impact with material reduction and the use of mono material making for easy recycling. The design and positioning of the label is brilliant.”
Parmalat’s quality products racked up yet another first-class performance at the 2014 SA Dairy Championship, claiming an unbeatable 13 SA Championship awards for a variety of cheeses, yoghurt and butter, as well as a coveted Qualité mark of excellence. Parmalat’s excellent annual performance at these prestigious awards is testament to its commitment towards producing innovative and quality dairy products.
The SA Dairy Championship was presented for the 180th time this year and Parmalat competed against 67 other producers and a total of 821 products in the various competition categories. The Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world.
The Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of exceptional dairy quality and Parmalat claimed one for its Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese.
Parmalat was the overall top performer in the SA Championship division with no less than 13 champions. The 13 Parmalat SA Champion products are:
Simonsberg Vintage Cheddar, Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Bonnita Matured Cheddar, Simonsberg Extra Matured Cheddar, Simonsberg Ready-to-eat Camembert, Simonsberg Cambrieni, Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese, Melrose Full Cream Cheddar Flavoured Cheese Spread, Melrose Full Cream Sweetmilk Cheese Spread (portions), Melrose Sweetmilk Cheese Slices, Fabulite Fat Free Plain Yoghurt, as well as the Parmalat-produced Woolworths Unsalted Butter 250g and Woolworths Mild Cheddar.
Lactalis South Africa is mindful of our responsibility towards the societies we live, work and do business in. We are committed to sustainable social development through social investments, while recognising that mere social investment is not enough and that effective and long-term corporate social investment (CSI) requires a well-managedprocess aimed at sustainability.
We strive to help meet the developmental needs of society through social investments. Our primary driver for social investments is improving the well-being of the communities in which the investments are made, not securing increased business value.
Click here to view Parmalat’s latest BBEEE certificate.
Built on the legacy of dairy giants
Lactalis South Africa is built on the solid foundations built by dairy giants in South Africa and France over the course of a century.
The international Lactalis Group was founded in 1933 by André Besnier in Laval in the west of France, the heart of French dairy country. The South African dairy roots can be traced back to a few years earlier when a group of local dairy farmers around the Boesmansrivier area in the Western Cape came together to form a cooperative in the early 1900s.
Bonnievale
In 1926 they built a cheese factory in Bonnievale where they used their milk to make Gouda cheese for which there was a growing national market. As the demand for their products increased, more milk producers joined them (from areas such Darling and Zebraskop) and they became a force to be reckoned with.
Soon their enthusiasm led to introduction of a wide range of other dairy products – Fresh milk in bottles, Yoghurt, Cheddar and Cottage cheese which made the Bonnita brand famous around the country.
Port Elizabeth
At the same time there were also dairy developments and growth in the Eastern Cape region. By the 1950s the United Dairy company was the main producer and distributor of milk products around the Port Elizabeth area. United was one of the first dairies in the country to use electric vehicles to deliver milk and in 1958 they pioneered the production of sterilised milk that lasted longer and could be transported further.
Later they were the first South African producer of UHT Milk and Juice in innovative carton packaging from Tetrapack. During the swinging 70s SteriStumpie, the original flavoured milk, was launched based on their sterilisation expertise - and to this day it remains a firm South African favourite.
Johannesburg and Melrose
In Johannesburg, an enterprising business man called Ruben Sieve started a small cheese factory making special cheese spreads that were soon to be called Melrose. Mr Sieve went on to be a Member of Parliament and to fight for equal rights in South African communities, while his brand prospered and became a firm favourite in the lunchbox of South African children and adults alike, while an older generation recognised the famous “Mum remembered Melrose” advertising jingle.
Stellenbosch
Back in the Western Cape local farmers in Stellenbosch pooled their resources in 1945 to become the first dairy to deliver milk daily to homes and hostels in Stellenbosch. The locals loved the rich creamy Jersey milk from their farm at the foothills of the Simonsberg mountain.
The farmers then also started making cheeses and other small cheeseries joined them to form the Simonsberg Cheese Company that would grow to be known for its quality cheeses. Together the Simonsberg team searched the world for cheese experts with innovative ideas. Their research paid off and they introduced South Africans to new cheese experiences that included Simonsberg Feta, Cream Cheese, Camembert and Brie and Creamy blue cheeses
Ladismith
In Ladismith the local dairy farmers set up a cheese making dairy close to a famous landmark that they named their business after Towerkop. They made some of the best Gouda in the country that was sold around South Africa under the SACCA brand.
Parow
In Parow another group of families built operations that served the local market with fresh dairy products on a daily basis. They came together as Van Riebeek Dairies in the mid 1960’s– this successful family enterprise grew in size and eventually merged with bigger dairies, and the factory remains an important producer of milk products in Parow.
Progress and growth
In every town these forward thinking businesses provided jobs to our people and wholesome dairy products to our communities. Their stories all merged in 1998 when the Italian dairy company, Parmalat, joined them all together to form Parmalat South Africa. This new enterprise continued to build on their successes to reach new heights over the next 20 years.
The highlights include, amongst other things, annual top performances at the prestigious SA Dairy Championships, building the biggest cheese plant in SA in Bonnievale, processing nearly 30 000 tonnes of cheese each year by 2019, and collecting 374million litres of milk from 135 farmers around the country in 2019 and transporting it over a distance of 4,5 million km across South Africa.
Lactalis Group and Lactalis South Africa
The former Parmalat SA is now fully part of a family business started in France in the 1930s. Lactalis acquired a majority share in Parmalat SpA in 2011 and took 100% control during 2019. With its acquisition of the majority stake in Parmalat during 2011, the Lactalis Group became the world leader in dairy products, a business move that heralded the emergence of a new truly multi-national Lactalis Group.
The Lactalis Group is the number one Cheese manufacturer in the world, the European leader in Drinking Milk, a major actor in the Chilled Dairy category, a leader in the Cream and Butter market, a growing player in the clinical and infant nutrition markets, as well as the undisputed leader in out-of-home catering, and an expert in dairy ingredients.
The 2020 name change of the local business to Lactalis South Africa is the final step in fully integrating the South African business with its French parent company.
SANHA a Aylesbury June 2021
SANHA Bonnievale June 2021
SANHA Ladismith June 2021
SANHA Parow UHT June 2021
SANHA Port Elizabeth June 2021
MJC certificate for Parmalat, Melrose, Président, Bonnita and Galbani
2019 Yoghurt
Drinking Yoghurt 2019
Drinking Yoghurt 2018
Yoghurt 2018
Imported Cheese – 2017 & 2018
Valid for the year of 2017
Parmalat SA Strand Ice Cream Confirmation
East London Confirmation 2017
Port Elizabeth Confirmation 2017
27 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa, the new player in the South African dairy landscape, has announced its entry to the local market with a bang by claiming the prestigious South African Dairy Championships Product of the Year prize for its Président Extra Mature Cheddar. This is the third time the past five years the company – previously known as Parmalat SA – has claimed this top South African dairy industry prize.
In addition Lactalis South Africa (LSA) also claimed 11 SA Champion accolades and three Qualité awards at the 2020 South African Dairy Championships. The Qualité mark of excellence is only given to the crème de la crème of the entries. LSA won Qualité awards for the following products: Président Extra Mature Cheddar (a full rounded cheese with a sweet, nutty profile that melts in the mouth) and two products made for Woolworths: Extra Mature White Cheddar and Mature Gouda.
Lactalis South Africa is home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président and Steri Stumpie, as well as Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury.
“This is the third time in five years we have won the Product of the Year award for one of our cheeses,” says Marek Warzywoda, General Manager: LSA. “I am so proud of the LSA team. It is a clear indication of how high the quality of our products is and how dedicated and superb our teams are. We would like to thank Agri-Expo for another fantastic and well-organised competition and for upholding such high standards for the local dairy industry.
“At LSA our teams work extremely hard to ensure our products remain excellent and awards (particularly the Product of the Year accolades of the past few years) are such incredible testaments to their ongoing ambition to deliver quality products. For our entire team this is a ray of welcome good news amidst the unprecedented challenges we all face due to the Corona-19 pandemic. I urge everyone to stay safe and stay home during these difficult times.”
This year’s award ceremony of the annual SA Dairy Championships, the largest dairy competition in Africa, was presented as a virtual event for the first time in its 187th anniversary in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2020 event included entries from 74 manufacturers who entered 975 products in 100 different dairy classes.
* LSA is part of the international Lactalis Group.
26 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa (LSA), one of the main players in the South African dairy industry and the producer of products that include milk, cheese, yoghurt, butter and maas, will continue working towards the sustained manufacturing and delivering of goods and services during the national lockdown period announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa. The lockdown commences at midnight on Thursday 26 March.
LSA is home to quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président, SteriStumpie, Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury. As per the President’s address, companies that are essential to the production and transportation of food and basic goods will remain open during the lockdown and LSA qualifies as one of these companies.
Some Lactalis SA employees will be required to commute to and from work during this time. The company has made the necessary arrangements to safeguard the health and safety of these employees. Other office-bound LSA’s employees will work from home during the national lockdown period. They will continue to support the business operations and logistics on a daily basis, while also taking various internally prescribed precautions against the spread of COVID-19.
LSA is known for its commitment to quality. The COVID-19 situation constantly changes and the company daily re-evaluates all processes in place to combat this outbreak. If the situation changes with regards to LSA production and operations, the company will issue updates.
*The various LSA brands hold strong positions across several dairy product categories, ranging from cheese, yoghurt, milk, and custard, to flavoured milk, cream, drinking yoghurt, maas, fruit beverages, butter and ice cream. Lactalis South Africa is part of the international Lactalis Group.
19 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa (LSA), one of the main players in the South African dairy industry, is engaged in various activities to minimize the risk of COVID-19 to its various stakeholders. LSA is known for its commitment to quality and given the fact that the COVID-19 in South Africa status constantly changes, the company daily re-evaluates all the processes it has in place to combat this outbreak.
The efforts to minimise the various possible effects of this pandemic is through LSA’s crisis management procedures and managed by the company’s Crisis Committee which meets daily, seven days a week.
LSA immediately engaged its crisis management processes as soon as the World Health Organisation (WHO) classified the COVID-19 viral outbreak as a pandemic. Following President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement of a national disaster on Sunday, LSA stepped up and increased its internal efforts to curb the potential spread of the virus. LSA recognises that people are the company’s greatest strength and to this end it has put various precautionary measures in place, including:
To ensure that the company acts in the best interests of its employees, business partners and other stakeholders, LSA is working closely with its relevant partners to make sure that they follow stringent hygienic and other safety measures. As a responsible corporate citizen, LSA is also engaging and partnering with local authorities and various communities in the fight against this pandemic.
At this stage the company’s measures are precautionary to ensure the safety of its employees, visitors, and business partners. Lactalis South Africa currently does not currently foresee any significant changes to its operations and supply chain.
Should the situation change, LSA will issue an update.
16 March 2020
Quality and consistency are key principles for Lactalis South Africa with regards to any and all products manufactured at our factories. Our Parmalat range of Cream Cheeses (Smoked Salmon, Spring Onion and Plain) as well as our Président range of Cream Cheese (Traditional, Smoked Salmon, Spring Onion, Blue Cheese, Sweet Thai Chili and Tangy Mustard) are Halaal-verified and certified by the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC). The ingredients and processes used at Lactalis South Africa's cheese factory also has MJC-accreditation.
Lactalis South Africa is sensitive to and respectful of the individual dietary needs of consumers of various religious backgrounds. The Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) Halaal Trust’s accreditation of the Cream Cheeses mentioned above make it fit for consumption by Muslim consumers. The company has complied with MJC-guidelines for many years. Our cream cheese ranges' ingredients and processes rigorously adhere to the MJC’s guidelines and also meet the Lactalis Group’s demanding internal quality standards.
The MJC is an organisation trusted by the Muslim community to ensure that food consumed by this community is Halaal. The MJC has been active in South Africa since 1945 and its approval for the above mentioned range of Parmalat and Président Cream Cheese is in line with universally accepted Halaal certification standards. The MJC has confirmed that all ingredients, processes and factories linked to the Cream Cheese ranges mentioned above adhere to rigorous MJC regulations and have been verified and accredited as such.
Please view MJC certification in link: https://lactalis.co.za/pieces/downloads/certificates/bonnievale-mjc-exp-31-dec-2020.pdf
2 March 2020
Lactalis South Africa, producer of the popular Melrose range, has enjoyed a long and respectful relationship with South African Muslim consumers and respects the MJC's guidelines.
The bacon-flavoured Melrose product in question has a smoky flavour and includes texturised vegetable protein that does not contain any bacon. Out of respect for Muslim preferences and guidelines the company however does not use the Halaal logo on its bacon-flavoured products.
The oversight was the result of human error and Lactalis South Africa sincerely regrets the incorrect usage of the MJC logo. Lactalis South Africa apologises for this oversight.
Lactalis South Africa has already corrected this mistake on all new packaging and no new bacon-flavoured products will erroneously be manufactured with the Halaal logo. Lactalis South Africa will also endeavour to remove the wrongly labeled products from shelves where possible.
Lactalis South Africa is a multi-national company and prides itself on adhering to multi-cultural food and other guidelines. Products with the Halaal logo allow those wanting to honour the regulations of their religion to do so.
View the MJC certificate for Melrose and other Lactalis South Africa cheeses at https://lactalis.co.za/page/about-us-sa on the CERTIFICATES section.
3 February 2020
A fresh era arrives for the South African dairy industry this year as a new player enters the local market. Lactalis South Africa is the new name for Parmalat SA and this name change came into effect on 1 February 2020.
This is a name change only and it will not impact the company’s existing range of products, brands, projects or business operations. Lactalis South Africa will remain the home of quality and trusted brands such as Parmalat, Melrose, Président and SteriStumpie, as well as Bonnita, PureJoy, Galbani, and Aylesbury. These familiar brands hold strong positions across several dairy product categories, ranging from cheese, yoghurt, milk, and custard, to flavoured milk, cream, drinking yoghurt, maas, fruit beverages, butter and ice cream.
Parmalat SA has been been part of the international Lactalis family for the past nine years since the Lactalis Group bought Parmalat in 2011. The local name change to Lactalis South Africa is the final step towards fully integrating the South African business with its international parent company, a family business that has a rich history and tradition in bringing the enjoyment of dairy products into people’s lives.
Although the company name has changed to Lactalis South Africa, the existing company registration number, VAT number, banking details, site addresses, and telephone numbers remain the same.
The Lactalis Group is a family-led company guided by a passion for dairy that was founded in 1933 by André Besnier in Laval in the west of France, the heart of French dairy country. The Lactalis Group is the world’s number one dairy group with 250 production sites in 50 countries and more than 90 000 team members in 94 countries. In South Africa the international Lactalis Group legacy and knowledge now merges with local dairy know-how and passion that has provided jobs and wholesome dairy products in South Africa since the early 1900s.
Marek Warzywoda, Lactalis South Africa General Manager, says “the change of name in South Africa is an exciting step for the local dairy industry and shows that our global dairy group has confidence in the business opportunities in this region.
“We are committed to continue providing quality products under our well-known local and global brands. Lactalis South Africa will build on the many successes and hard work of those who came before us. Locally the roots of this business can be traced back to the early 1900s. This accumulated South African expertise now joins forces with a proud French family heritage also dating back to the early 1900s.”
1 April 2019
Parmalat South Africa cemented its position as a Big Cheese in the South African dairy landscape by claiming three coveted Qualité awards, 13 SA Champion accolades and 15 first prizes across dairy categories at the 2019 South African Dairy Championships.
Winning products in each class are crowned SA Champions, while a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence. The 2019 event’s 75 judges ranged from dairy technologists and cheese retailers to chefs.
The Parmalat products that claimed the prestigious Qualité mark of excellence are Président Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months), and two products made for Woolworths: Matured Gouda (10 months) and Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months). The Président cheese is made at PSA’s Bonnievale Plant, while the other two cheeses are made at its Ladismith Plant.
PSA’s SA Champion products are:
Président Brie Ready-to-Eat, Parmalat Matured Cheddar (6 months), Melrose Biltong Wedges, Steri Stumpie Plus Thick Chocolate Praline, Steri Stumpie Cream Soda, YogoFun Banana Custard Low Fat Drinking Yoghurt, and the following products made for Woolworths: Matured Gouda (10 months), Continental Extra Hard Cheese (Black Wax, 20 months), Real Vanilla Dairy Ice Cream, Soft Scoop Vanilla and Berry Flavoured Ice Cream, Matured Cheddar (4 months), Extra Matured Cheddar (12 months) and Feta Black Pepper.
Eugene Swarts, PSA’s General Manager, praised the teams involved in making Parmalat’s quality range of products and securing awards for products ranging from cheese and ice cream, to drinking yoghurt and flavoured milk. In addition, Parmalat claimed all top three prizes in the SA Dairy Champs category for Processed Cheese Single Portions with Melrose Biltong Wedges receiving the SA Champion title, and Melrose Cheddar Wedges in second and Melrose Sweetmilk Wedges in third place.
“Awards like these underline the fact that our products meet the highest standards and delight consumers. We are proud of our teams’ hard work and we salute their dedication and commitment to meeting the exceptional standards we set for ourselves.”
* Parmalat SA (Pty) Ltd.’s parent company is the French international dairy company Lactalis
8 November 2018
Parmalat SA (PSA) wowed international cheese judges and won a gold and two bronze awards at the 2018 World Cheese Awards (WCA). PSA's Gold award was for its Président 12-month Mature Cheddar, while the two Bronze medals went to Parmalat Cheddar and the Woolworths 18-month Vintage Cheddar produced by Parmalat SA.
PSA bettered its performance at this year's event after only claiming one Silver and one Bronze award last year. This was the 31st annual WCA and the 2018-event was held in Norway for the first time. The 2018 WCA event was judged by a team of 235 judges from 41 different countries, and 3472 cheeses competed for the top prize that this year went to a Gouda-style cheese made on a small farm in Norway.
Cathy Eve, PSA Marketing Executive, has welcomed the WCA accolades for the three Parmalat Cheddars, saying these outstanding international results underline the quality of Parmalat's cheese range. "It is a clear indication of the high quality of our cheese range and the dedication and expertise of our teams. Parmalat remains committed to producing high quality dairy products and we are proud to also have this acknowledged by international cheese experts."
The international accolades follow after PSA rewrote local dairy history earlier this year by claiming the prestigious Product of the Year prize for the second year running at the annual SA Dairy Championship. PSA secured the 2018 Product of the Year award for the second consecutive year for its 10-month Mature Gouda, an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. This achievement was the first of its kind for the 185-year-old event. At the 2018 SA Dairy Championship Parmalat SA triumphed across dairy classes by claiming seven Qualité* awards and an exceptional total of 15 SA Championship prizes. The SA Dairy Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world.
* The Qualité award is South Africa's only officially acknowledged symbol of outstanding dairy quality and the following seven Parmalat products now carry the much desired Qualité black and gold emblem: Président Matured Gouda 6 Months, UHT Low Fat Milk, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited Strawberry, as well as the following three cheeses produced for Woolworths: Matured Gouda 10 Months, Vintage Cheddar White, and Matured Gouda 20 Months.
6 July 2018
The lock-out at some of Parmalat SA’s (PSA) operational facilities has been terminated.
After protracted negotiations between PSA and FAWU, an agreement was reached on Friday, 6 July. This will see a return to work by all striking workers by Monday, 9 July. Chris Vermeulen, PSA’s Human Resource Executive, welcomed the agreement which he regards as a fair and reasonable outcome for both parties. The agreement provides for a 7.75% increase to employees at bargaining unit level.
The agreement ends the 9-day strike that had been accompanied by high levels of intimidation of non-striking workers and incidents of violence resulting in damage to property. Vermeulen lamented the fact that the strike occurred in the first place on a ‘no work, no pay’ basis, worsening the financial hardship of employees even further.
The strike and consequent lock-out followed when a deadlock was reached after negotiations between the parties took place over a number of weeks. PSA implemented the lock-out of less than 700 FAWU-members last week (on Wednesday, 27 June) after the union served PSA with notice of the strike on Monday, 26 June. PSA employs a total workforce of approximately 2400 employees.
Vermeulen said PSA successfully limited the impact of the strike through well-prepared contingency plans and the commitment of its non-striking workforce. Operational plans were in place to ensure that the safety of employees, contractors and customers was not negatively affected. The same applied to product supply to consumers and customers.
28 June 2018
Parmalat SA (PSA) implemented a lock-out of employees who are FAWU-members on 27 June. The lockout is effective at some of PSA’s operational facilities and commenced at midday on Wednesday 27 June. It is directed at 75% of the approximately 900 FAWU members working for PSA. PSA employs a total workforce of approximately 2400 employees. The lock-out was implemented in response to the union’s decision to embark on a strike on the 27th after giving the company 48 hours’ notice.
This strike and consequent lock-out followed when a deadlock was reached after negotiations with the union over many weeks. The process included mediation by the CCMA. PSA has described the decision to strike as “disappointing given that the parties had previously, at FAWU’s request, agreed to meet again on 29 June”.
Chris Vermeulen, PSA’s Human Resource Executive, says the company has indicated its willingness throughout the negotiation process to move on its offer if FAWU did the same. “It’s also important to note that the notice to strike was issued without the ballot process being followed in line with FAWU’s own constitution.” He confirmed that PSA has implemented contingency plans to ensure the safety of its employees, contractors and visitors. “Unfortunately the strike has already been accompanied by a high level of intimidation, preventing employees from working or returning to work and there have been incidents of violence resulting in damage to property,” he added.
“Quality however remains our product focus and we have operational plans in place to ensure that product supply to our consumers and customers is not negatively affected.”
Vermeulen says PSA is aware of the financial hardship of some of their employees. “We presented FAWU with an offer which is fair and reasonable given the current economic conditions. It’s sad that the union’s decision to not accept the offer and to embark on industrial action on a ‘no work, no pay’ basis will worsen the hardship of employees even further.”
PSA indicated it will only allow union members back on its premises once the industrial action is officially and unconditionally ended and fully abandoned by FAWU. This is in accordance with standard labour relations practise and legislation.
*At the start of the negotiations between PSA and FAWU the union demanded a 12% increase plus numerous other demands. After weeks of negotiations their demand stood at 9% (on 27 June) with a number of remaining demands, while the company’s offer stood at 7.3% plus a once-off payment of R500. PSA describes the union’s remaining other demands (including monthly incentive bonuses of R1000) as “substantial” and says it cannot be agreed to.
15 June 2018
Parmalat SA’s Yoghurt has once again been voted as the ‘Coolest Yoghurt Brand’ in the 2018 Sunday Times Generation Next youth survey, claiming this accolade for the second year running. The 2018 top performing brands were announced at the highly anticipated Sunday Times Generation Next Award ceremony that took place in Sandton on Thursday, 14 June.
Now in its 14th year, the Sunday Times Generation Next youth survey, presented in association with leading youth market specialists HDI Youth Marketeers, polls more than 12,000 youths from around the country across more than 70 categories. The survey is considered the leading barometer of what South African children, teens and young adults find ‘on-trend’ and aspirational. According to Reardon Sanderson, GM group sales and marketing at Tiso Blackstar, the survey is a great insight into how the youth perceive and attribute value to brands in a highly competitive market. “It’s always important for brands to understand how a very switched-on youth segment makes decisions, as they’ll be the income-earners of tomorrow.”
Monica Howarth, Parmalat South Africa (PSA) Marketing Manager, says the fact that Parmalat’s yoghurt range won the top yoghurt spot in the survey for the second consecutive year is testament to the company’s ongoing commitment to great quality and good taste. “It reflects the mammoth efforts of the various teams to ensure that our deliciously creamy yoghurt range continues to deliver on the overall Parmalat brand promise of great quality.” Earlier this year two PSA yoghurts - Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, and Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited – Strawberry – received Qualité awards at the annual SA Dairy Championships, accolades reserved for only a select few products.
Other Parmalat products such as Steri Stumpie, Melrose Spread and EverFreshUHT Milk also claimed spots in the top ten of their respective categories in this year’s Sunday Times Generation Next Youth survey.
6 June 2018
The quality of the products it offers to consumers is of the utmost importance to Parmalat and our entire yoghurt range is Halaal-verified and certified by the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC). The ingredients and processes used, as well as Parmalat’s factories, also have MJC-accreditation.
Parmalat is sensitive to and respectful of the individual dietary needs of consumers of various religious backgrounds. The Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) Halaal Trust’s accreditation of Parmalat yoghurts makes it fit for consumption by Muslim consumers. The company has complied with the MJC-guidelines for many years. The yoghurt range’s ingredients and processes rigorously adhere to the MJC’s guidelines and also meet Parmalat’s own demanding quality standards.
The MJC is an organisation entrusted by the Muslim community with ensuring that food consumed is Halaal. The MJC has been active in South Africa since 1945 and its approval for Parmalat’s yoghurts is in line with universally accepted Halaal certification standards. The MJC has confirmed that all Parmalat’s ingredients, processes and factories have adhered to MJC regulations and have been verified and accredited. The Council’s certificate of approval for yoghurt is also adhered to by other leading yoghurt suppliers.
26 March 2018
Parmalat SA has rewritten SA dairy history by claiming the prestigious Product of the Year prize for the second year running at the annual SA Dairy Championships. This achievement is a first of its kind for the 185-year-old event.
PSA secured the 2018 Product of the Year award for the second consecutive year for its 10-month Mature Gouda, an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese produced for Woolworths. PSA triumphed across dairy classes by claiming seven Qualité awards and an exceptional total of 15 SA Championship prizes. Winning products in each class are crowned SA Champions, a select few are awarded the Qualité Mark of Excellence, while only the most superior of these is named as the overall Product of the Year.
The Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of outstanding dairy quality and the following seven Parmalat products will soon be sporting the much desired Qualité black and gold emblem: Président Matured Gouda 6 Months, UHT Low Fat Milk, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Choc Chip, Medium Fat Yoghurt - Fruited – Strawberry, as well as the following three cheeses produced for Woolworths: Matured Gouda 10 Months, Vintage Cheddar – White, and Matured Gouda 20 Months.
Cathy Eve, PSA Marketing Executive, says the team is delighted with the results. “This is the third time in nine years we have won the Product of the Year award for one our cheeses, a clear indication of the high quality of our products and the dedication and diligence of our teams. To make SA Dairy Champs history by winning Product of the Year two years in a row is an added bonus! We’re also especially proud to have secured Qualité awards for two of our Parmalat yoghurts and our Parmalat EverFresh UHT Low Fat Milk. This shows our commitment to high quality dairy products across our product portfolio.”
SA Dairy Championship chief judge and international dairy expert Kobus Mulder says that for a product to be chosen as Dairy Product of the Year in a competition of this nature is a long and difficult journey and the dream of every dairy technologist. “That the honour befalls this year’s winner of the prestigious title for the second year in a row, is exceptional. Not only is it an extraordinary performance, but also proof of sustained good manufacturing practices and quality control by the personnel of the manufacturer. Technically and gastronomically the Parmalat 10- month Mature Gouda is as close to perfection as a food product can come.”
This year’s SA Dairy Championship was contested by 83 producers who entered 945 dairy products. The Championship was first presented in 1834 and is the oldest of its kind in Africa. This year products competed for the attention of 84 judges ranging from food technologists and cheese retailers, to food bloggers and chefs.
30 November 2017
Parmalat won two prizes at the prestigious 2017 World Cheese Awards (WCA)* in London where more than 3000 cheeses from across the world were judged. Parmalat’s 20-month aged Mature Gouda made for Woolworths was awarded a silver medal, while Parmalat’s Medium Cheddar won a bronze award.
This international nod of approval for Parmalat’s Matured Gouda produced for Woolworths follows after it was also named as the South African Product of the Year at this year’s SA Dairy Championships. The cheese is an aromatic and full-flavoured cheese.
Parmalat also excelled in the rest of the 2017 SA Dairy Championship competition by winning four coveted Qualité Mark of Excellence awards and 11 SA Champion prizes. The Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world. Three of PSA’s Qualité award winners are produced at its Ladismith Plant: the Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Parmalat Matured Cheddar, and the Matured Gouda (maximum age 12 months) produced for Woolworths. The fourth PSA product claiming a Qualité award is the Woolworths Vintage Cheddar (minimum age 18 months) produced at the Parmalat Bonnievale Plant.
Commenting on the World Cheese Awards results Cathy Eve, Parmalat SA’s Marketing Executive, says “Parmalat is immensely proud of the team of cheese makers in our business who consistently produce such high quality cheeses. To win local accolades in the form of Qualité awards is very important and to have the same product recognised internationally is a testament to the high level of expertise in the South African industry.”
*This year was the 30th time the annual WCA event took place and the international entries were adjudicated by 230 judges. Cornish kern, a British cheese, was crowned as the overall World Champion Cheese.
27 March 2017
Parmalat does not compromise on food quality and safety
Parmalat SA does not release products for human consumption that pose any health risk. PSA’s procedures for product evaluation and risk assessment are robust and regularly audited by local customers and authorities, as well as international experts.
A story initially reported in Rapport newspaper on Sunday 26 March 2017 was triggered by a 2016 CCMA ruling in a case between a disgruntled employee and Parmalat South Africa (PSA). The ruling upheld the dismissal of an employee who was removed as a quality manager at a Parmalat Plant in 2014 for poor performance, including not following procedures in the identification and correction of quality issues – a critical role in any food production facility.
Milk is a natural product with quality variations. As a responsible dairy processor PSA has in place specifically designed systems to detect any quality issues as early as possible, and to assess the root causes and take necessary corrective action.
The allegations described in the Rapport story refer to events that took place in 2014. When a processing issue was identified, the rigorous system of identifying the cause and putting corrective action in place was initiated. This would also have formed an important aspect of the quality manager’s role. The source of the problem was in fact identified by an international expert that was asked to assist.
The PSA product safety system worked. It prevented any contaminated product from being released from PSA’s Bonnievale plant to any of our customers, and consumers were never at risk.
PSA is regularly audited by key customers (including retailers and other food manufacturers) and all information about production and product quality is shared openly in such relationships. PSA has not falsified any laboratory reports or deliberately withheld information with the purpose of allowing poor quality products to be distributed and sold on.
As a leading company Parmalat highly values employee engagement – a good, competent and motivated work force is vital to ensure that such a large organisation runs efficiently and everyone maintains the quality standards that make up the Parmalat brand. Job specific expertise and integrity are critical – especially in quality management positions. PSA has many checks and balances to ensure that any employee who is not satisfied with his or her treatment can escalate issues via a Tip-off Line that has been in place since 2010. In this case, the allegations of mismanagement were raised after the process of dismissal had been initiated.
No individual has ever been dismissed from PSA for whistleblowing.
Parmalat entered openly into the CCMA hearing process, knowing full well that it is in the public domain, but being of the opinion that there was nothing to hide. Parmalat does not wish to engage in any personal attack on the employee concerned – the employment issue has been dealt with through the relevant channels and the dismissal has been upheld.
PSA manufactures a wide range of high quality dairy products. The company employs about 2500 people around the country in fields ranging from processing, packing, and distribution, to sales and marketing. The business has a worldwide reputation for good manufacturing practices and high quality products. Good practices and quality products are of the utmost importance to PSA and will not be compromised at any time. It is disappointing that unfounded allegations about Parmalat product safety have found public voice and could cause unnecessary concern.
The quality of the products it offers to consumers is of the utmost importance to Parmalat and the company’s entire yoghurt range is Halaal-verified and certified by the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC). The ingredients and processes used, as well as Parmalat’s factories, also have MJC-accreditation.
Parmalat has always been sensitive to and respectful of the individual dietary needs of its consumers of various religious backgrounds and is proud of the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) Halaal Trust’s accreditation of Parmalat yoghurts, making it fit for consumption by Muslim consumers.
The MJC is an organisation entrusted by the Muslim community with ensuring that food consumed is Halaal. MJC scholars say the Council has thoroughly investigated the matter and can confidently say that whatever products are certified by the Muslim Judicial Council is Halaal, in particular the gelatin used in these foods. “We wish to reassure the community that the use of gelatin if certified by the MJC is Halaal and in line with the Ruling of the MJC Fatwa Dept. and other reputable Islamic Scholars worldwide. The issue of the use of gelatin in food products has been dealt with in detail by the MJC.”
The MJC has been active in South Africa since 1945 and its approval for Parmalat’s yoghurts is in line with universally accepted Halaal certification standards. The MJC has confirmed that all Parmalat’s ingredients, processes and factories have adhered to MJC regulations and have been verified and accredited. The Council’s certificate of approval for yoghurt is also adhered to by other leading yoghurt suppliers.
André Mahoney, Parmalat SA Marketing Executive, has confirmed that Parmalat’s yoghurts are verified and certified and says the company has complied with the MJC-guidelines for many years.
“Our ingredients and processes rigorously adhere to the MJC’s guidelines and also meet our own demanding quality standards.”
Parmalat cheese has once again showed its class, this time impressing international cheese connoisseurs with its taste and quality. The Simonsberg 6-Month Matured Gouda has been named as a Super Gold Award winner at the World Cheese Awards in Spain. The Super Gold Awards list the world’s best cheeses and the Simonsberg Gouda was one of only two South African cheeses (and the only locally-produced hard cheese) to claim this accolade. It was also the first time a Parmalat cheese won the Super Gold Award at this prestigious annual event.
The winning Simonsberg Gouda is a light creamy cheese with a milky-sweet, savoury taste, and with pleasant tastes of salt and pepper lingering in the mouth. The cheese is produced at the Parmalat SA (PSA) Ladismith Plant and is available at all good retailers.
More than 3 000 cheeses from 32 countries were entered for the 29th World Cheese Awards and 266 judges from 26 countries were tasked with choosing the select group of award-winning cheeses from the thousands of entries.
Parmalat cheeses recorded its best overall annual performance at this year’s Awards by also securing two more gold, one silver and two bronze prizes in other cheese classes. These winners are: gold – Président Brie (class 4), and Simonsberg 24-Month Matured Gouda (class 10); silver – Simonsberg 10-Month Matured Gouda (class 16), and bronze – Parmalat Mild Cheddar (class 2), and Parmalat Smoked Salmon-flavoured Cream Cheese (class 1).
Earlier this year PSA was named as the top performer at the 2016 South African Diary Championship, winning an unrivalled five Qualité and 12 SA Champion awards. André Mahoney, PSA Marketing Executive, says the Super Gold Award proves that the Parmalat cheese basket can compete with the best international cheeses. “Our focus has always been and still remains on great-tasting quality and we are proud that this is not only recognised locally, but also internationally.”
Parmalat SA emerged as the top performer at the 2016 South African Diary Championship with an unrivalled five Qualité and 12 SA Champion awards. The Championship weighed the company up against a record 85 other manufacturers and underlined Parmalat’s commitment to producing quality products.
The Qualité award is the mark of excellence for dairy products in South Africa and PSA claimed the coveted award for its Round Gouda, as well as the following products produced for Woolworths: Unsalted Butter, Ice Cream with Condiments (WW Soft Scoop Vanilla and Berry Ice Cream), Matured Gouda, and Extra Hard Cheese.
The PSA products named as SA Champions include Gouda, Matured Gouda and Gouda matured for 24 months, Cheddar, White Cheddar (both those matured for 6 months and for 12 months), Simonsberg Traditional Camembert, Président Ready-to-Eat Brie, Unsalted Butter, Garlic Butter, Melrose wedges and Ice Cream.
André Mahoney, PSA’s Marketing Executive, says Parmalat is proud of its performance against an increasing number of competitors and products.
“It’s great to see Président, one of our relatively new launches in South Africa, taking its place on the podium this year alongside Parmalat’s existing range of established product ranges. Our teams work extremely hard to ensure that we honour the quality promise we make to consumers; we not only strive to continuously improve on what we do, but we also look at innovation and new products to give consumers an even greater choice of excellent Parmalat products. Our 2016 SA Dairy Champs performances once again demonstrate that consumers and customers can rely on us to provide them with dairy products of exceptional quality.”
The 2016 Championship was adjudicated by 72 judges tasked with assessing the record 886 products entered by 86 manufacturers.
Parmalat has emerged as one of the top performers at the 2015 Qualité Awards, claiming three prestigious Qualité awards, while no less than fifteen of its products were named as SA Champions in various classes.
The Qualité mark is awarded to products of excellence and Parmalat’s awards are for Parmalat’s Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese, Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese and the Matured (18 months old) White Cheddar Parmalat produces for Woolworths.
The products named as SA Champions are winners in each of the 95 classes in the various categories that include cheese, butter, yoghurt, ice cream, and flavoured milk. Parmalat claimed first prizes for the following products:
Parmalat Round Gouda; Simonsberg Matured Gouda; Parmalat Garlic & Parsley Butter; Parmalat Processed Cheddar Spread; Simonsberg Mozzarella portions; Simonsberg Feta with Black Pepper; Parmalat Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese; Simonsberg Medium Fat Smoked Ham Cream Cheese; Royalty Tin Roof Dairy Ice cream, and Royalty Vanilla Dairy Ice Cream, as well as all the following products produced for Woolworths – Unsalted Butter (250g); Plain Feta; White Cheddar (12 months); Matured White Cheddar (18 months) and Matured White Cheddar (12 months).
Parmalat dominated in the category for Cream Cheese with Condiments with the Parmalat Salmon Flavoured Low Fat Cream Cheese claiming first place and Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese placed second. Qualité status is usually only awarded to the winner of a specific class, but in this case the judges decided that both the first and second place products would be given a Qualité award of excellence.
André Mahoney, Parmalat SA Marketing Executive, says the various awards have underlined the company’s commitment to quality. “The competition is tougher each year with various new players emerging. It’s great to see the greater dairy industry growing and we are proud to consistently be one of the top performers. This is proof that our team continues to invest mammoth effort and expertise in our range of products. Quality remains the main pillar of our brand promise to consumers.”
A record number of 879 entries from 80 producers competed for honours in this year’s SA Dairy Championship, the 181st time the dairy industry awards were presented. 61 Judges, consisting of sensory evaluators, manufacturers, chefs and food writers judged the entries earlier this year. The cheese category was the largest by far, taking up more than half of the entries for this year’s awards.
The event was organised by Agri-Expo and Johan Ehlers, CEO of Agri-Expo, says the record number of entries is a clear indication of the high level of confidence dairy producers have in the championships. “We were particularly impressed with the 17% increase in producer participation, as it shows a growing need to benchmark their products at a national standard.”
Parmalat South Africa is continuing its investigation into the cause of the production problems that resulted in the full voluntary recall of a small batch of PureJoy 200ml Apple Juice earlier this week. The national recall affects the 200ml UHT apple juice with the best before (expiration) date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 (E 14.12.15).
Since announcing the recall, Parmalat has proactively notified all the necessary authorities of its actions and provided all information requested. The company also continues to communicate with all the relevant the authorities. Parmalat spokesperson André Mahoney says their main objective “remains ensuring that we do everything in our power to communicate this message to consumers, and to make sure we are taking all possible action to recover as much of the product as possible.
“We are on track with that and the message has already gone out in print and digital media, as well as on radio and television. We’ve had a tremendous response from consumers and are still busy collecting the affected packs from people who purchased it before sales of the batch was restricted.”
Parmalat instituted the recall after following up two consumer complaints about the 200ml juice. The company’s investigation showed that a small batch, about 300 packs, of PureJoy Apple Juice contained traces of sodium hydroxide, also known as caustic soda.
Ingestion of sodium hydroxide can cause spontaneous vomiting, chest and/or abdominal pain, and/or difficulty swallowing, with excessive production of saliva. People can respond differently and consumers who drank the affected 200ml juice and have experienced these symptoms, should please consider seeking medical advice.
Anyone who purchased the 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice with the best before (expiration) date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 (E 14.12.15) are urged to phone 0860 66 44 22 or mail parmalat@121group.co.za for immediate collection and refund.
Mr Mahoney has assured the public that all Parmalat’s other products are safe to consume. “This issue aside, all PureJoy products, including 200ml apple juice produced on other dates and all other flavours are safe to consume. No other Parmalat products, including no other PureJoy Juice variants, have been affected. All of our other products continue to have the high quality standards that consumers have come to expect from Parmalat.”
A thorough investigation of the production records has enabled Parmalat to isolate the problem to a production time window of less than five minutes. At that time the machine initiated an unscheduled cleaning cycle, releasing a small quantity of sodium hydroxide into the line. The production line immediately reverted to normal process conditions, hence the very short window. The cause of this malfunction is still under investigation.
*Sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) is used to clean and sterilise the production lines and there are no long term side effects to this chemical. The symptoms mentioned earlier usually occur immediately in the mouth and throat and may cause subsequent abdominal discomfort.
Full product details:
Parmalat 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice is packaged in a green-coloured 200ml UHT carton with straw attached, and is marked as follows:
+ Parmalat (brand); PureJoy Juice (product)
+ Apple (flavour); 200ml (pack size)
+ Information in Best Before box on top of pack:
P 14.12.14 (production date) AND P 15.12.14
E 14.12.15 (expiry date) AND E 15.12.15
ZA 5/19 (factory code).
Parmalat South Africa has announced the voluntary recall of a batch of 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice.
To date two complaints have been confirmed in connection with this incident. Quality is the main pillar of Parmalat’s brand promise to consumers and as a result, any possible quality and safety problems receive immediate and urgent attention.
The 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice complaints were followed up and the products in question were recovered for investigation. Parmalat’s investigation confirmed the products had been contaminated with cleaning chemicals, making it unfit for consumption.
Ingestion of sodium hydroxide can cause spontaneous vomiting, chest and/or abdominal pain, and/or difficulty swallowing with excessive production of saliva. People can respond differently, if you experience these symptoms please consider seeking medical advice.
As a precautionary measure, all 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice products with an expiry date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 have subsequently been removed from shelf in the majority of retail and wholesale stores.
Parmalat spokesperson André Mahoney says initial investigations point towards a factory problem that resulted in the release of a small number of packs that had been contaminated with cleaning chemicals. “All the unsold affected products have already been recalled from our distribution system, as well as, where possible, from the stores to which it had been distributed. Our records indicate that the distribution for primary sale was most likely limited to the Western Cape, but we recognise that consumers or distributors could have taken the product into other areas.”
In addition, a thorough investigation of production records has enabled Parmalat to isolate the problem to a production time window of less than five minutes. Parmalat is continuing its investigation while following the voluntary recall process.
Consumers who have purchased the 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice with the best before (expiration) date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 (E 14.12.15 AND 15.12.15) are urged to phone 0860 66 44 22 or mail parmalat@121group.co.za for immediate collection and refund.
The voluntary recall only pertains to 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice. No other Parmalat products or code dates are affected by this recall.
Full product details:
Parmalat 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice is packaged in a green-coloured 200ml UHT carton with straw attached, and is marked as follows:
- Parmalat (brand)
- PureJoy Juice (product)
- Apple (flavour)
- 200ml (pack size)
- Information in Best Before box on top of pack:
P 14.12.14 (production date) AND P 15.12.14
E 14.12.15 (expiry date) AND E 15.12.15
ZA 5/19 (factory code)
Parmalat South Africa has announced the voluntary recall of a batch of 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice.
To date two complaints have been confirmed in connection with this incident. Quality is the main pillar of Parmalat’s brand promise to consumers and as a result, any possible quality and safety problems receive immediate and urgent attention.
The 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice complaints were followed up and the products in question were recovered for investigation. Parmalat’s investigation confirmed the products had been contaminated with cleaning chemicals, making it unfit for consumption.
As a precautionary measure, all 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice products with an expiry date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 have subsequently been removed from shelf in the majority of retail and wholesale stores.
Parmalat spokesperson André Mahoney says initial investigations point towards a factory problem that resulted in the release of a small number of packs that had been contaminated with cleaning chemicals. “All the unsold affected products have already been recalled from our distribution system, as well as, where possible, from the stores to which it had been distributed. Our records indicate that the distribution for primary sale was most likely limited to the Western Cape, but we recognise that consumers or distributors could have taken the product into other areas.”
In addition, a thorough investigation of production records has enabled Parmalat to isolate the problem to a production time window of less than five minutes. Parmalat is continuing its investigation while following the voluntary recall process.
Consumers who have purchased the 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice with the best before (expiration) date of 14 AND 15/12/2015 (E 14.12.15 AND 15.12.15) are urged to phone 0860 66 44 22 or mail parmalat@121group.co.za for immediate collection and refund.
The voluntary recall only pertains to 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice. No other Parmalat products or code dates are affected by this recall.
Full product details:
Parmalat 200ml UHT PureJoy Apple Juice is packaged in a green-coloured 200ml UHT carton with straw attached, and is marked as follows:
- Parmalat (brand)
- PureJoy Juice (product)
- Apple (flavour)
- 200ml (pack size)
- Information in Best Before box on top of pack:
P 14.12.14 (production date) AND P 15.12.14
E 14.12.15 (expiry date) AND E 15.12.15
ZA 5/19 (factory code)
Parmalat Cheese has won the TGI Icon Brand award for the Cheese Category for the second year running. This year’s award in this prestigious annual South African TGI Icon Brands benchmarking survey went to Parmalat Processed Cheese.
Earlier this year Parmalat’s quality products also racked up yet another first-class performance at the 2014 SA Dairy Championship, claiming an unbeatable 13 SA Championship awards as well as a coveted Qualité mark of excellence. The accolades are also testament to Parmalat’s commitment towards producing quality dairy products.
Yumna Frizlar, Senior Brand Manager, says the ICON Brand Survey by TGI is “the largest of its kind in South Africa, 19 sectors, hundreds of product categories and thousands of brands are included in the measurement.”
Parmalat’s quality products racked up yet another first-class performance at the 2014 SA Dairy Championship, claiming an unbeatable 13 SA Championship awards for a variety of cheeses, yoghurt and butter, as well as a coveted Qualité mark of excellence. Parmalat’s excellent annual performance at these prestigious awards is testament to its commitment towards producing innovative and quality dairy products.
The SA Dairy Championship was presented for the 180th time this year and Parmalat competed against 67 other producers and a total of 821 products in the various competition categories. The Championship represents the entire South African dairy industry and is perceived as one of the top dairy competitions in the world.
The Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of exceptional dairy quality and Parmalat claimed one for its Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese.
Parmalat was the overall top performer in the SA Championship division with no less than 13 champions. The 13 Parmalat SA Champion products are:
Simonsberg Vintage Cheddar, Simonsberg Matured Gouda, Bonnita Matured Cheddar, Simonsberg Extra Matured Cheddar, Simonsberg Ready-to-eat Camembert, Simonsberg Cambrieni, Simonsberg Low Fat Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese, Melrose Full Cream Cheddar Flavoured Cheese Spread, Melrose Full Cream Sweetmilk Cheese Spread (portions), Melrose Sweetmilk Cheese Slices, Fabulite Fat Free Plain Yoghurt, as well as the Parmalat-produced Woolworths Unsalted Butter 250g and Woolworths Mild Cheddar.
Parmalat SA’s Marketing Executive, André Mahoney, says Parmalat’s lucky 13 SA Champions and Qualité award are the end-result of the entire team’s commitment to excellence and being the country’s most innovative dairy company. “Our competition ups their game every year and an increasing number of smaller boutique producers also join the overall pool, yet Parmalat remains a constant top performer. We are proud of our people and our products and we remain committed to giving consumers quality and great taste.”
The internationally experienced cheese judge, Ulf Mortensen, says the general level of quality of the entries has improved since he last judged at the SA Dairy Championships in 2012. “These dairy sector awards remain at the forefront of industry recognition and are a worthy example of what other industries should try to emulate to foster innovation".
Parmalat SA prides itself on the company’s focus on quality and the superiority of the milk it procures is therefore of the utmost performance. At its 2013 Supplier Quality Award function held recently, Parmalat rewarded 15 of its milk producers with cash prizes to acknowledge the top quality of the milk they provide to Parmalat across South Africa.
The overall winner who received R50 000 in prize money was Pieter van Rensburg of the farm Voorrechtvlei in the Swellendam district. Pieter has been a Parmalat milk supplier for more than two decades and farms with Jerseys.
Voorrechtvlei’s milk has an average bacterial level of less than 10 000 and scored full marks on Parmalat’s Milk Quality Scorecard, used to judge milk procured from January to December for the specific year. Other aspects taken into account for the Scorecard include the volume of milk, levels of butterfat and protein and the somatic cell count. In addition, the Scorecard also takes factors such as seasonality and duration of supply into account.
Berlo Coetsee, Parmalat’s Head: Milk Procurement, said producers like these helped to give the company a competitive edge in the market. “We have seen huge quality improvements in recent years, there has been enormous progress. In the long run, companies that have secured their quality will do better than others.”
The following 14 milk producers also received cash prizes for the exceptional quality of the milk they deliver to Parmalat: Louis Giliomee, Kragga near Heidelberg; Daan Janse van Rensburg, Spekboom in the Alexandria district; Gerhard Janse van Rensburg, Blenheim in the Alexandria district; Jannie de Kock, Hartebeesrivier Landgoed, Caledon; Pieter Groenewald, Glen Etive, Heidelberg; Pieter Rademan, Hooggeleë, Heidelberg; Hennie Eksteen, Napkysmond Boerdery, Swellendam; Thinus Giliomee, Bloemendal, Heidelberg; Deon Malherbe, Eselfontein, Ceres; Jan Schoonwinkel, Kluitjieskraal, Swellendam; Pieter Crous, Kluitjieskraal, Swellendam; Hennie Rall, Klein Tradouw, Barrydale; Japie de Kock, Sandfontein, Greyton, and Gordon Robertson, Fernbank, Knysna.
Parmalat CEO Louise Cooke announced the winners in Stellenbosch and praised the milk producers for their role in Parmalat’s value chain of quality. She said the company’s major quality accolades the past year – including being the top performer at the 2013 SA Dairy Championships and being named as Cheese Category winner in the prestigious annual South African TGI Icon Brands benchmarking survey – are also testament to the company’s exceptional milk producers.
South Africans choose Parmalat as top cheese - 22 July 2013
Say cheese and South Africans do really think of one single quality brand: Parmalat. Parmalat’s popularity in the cheese market was underlined again when it was named as the 2013/2014 Cheese Category Winner in the prestigious annual South African TGI Icon Brands benchmarking survey*.
The winners of the 2013 survey were announced in Johannesburg last week and Parmalat Cheese’s Category Winner accolade means the brand attained the highest overall score in this category.
This follows hot on the heels of Parmalat’s sterling performance at the recent 2013 SA Dairy Championships where the dairy company emerged as the overall top performer for the third consecutive year by winning an incredible 16 SA Championship first prizes and three coveted Qualité awards. The annual Dairy Championships is the benchmark for local dairy products and the Qualité award is South Africa’s only officially acknowledged symbol of exceptional dairy quality.
Ryk Coetzee, Marketing Manager: Cheese, says Parmalat’s top position in the Icon Brand Cheese Category underlines the overall focus on quality of Parmalat’s wide range of cheese products, ranging from matured cheeses, everyday cheese and grated cheese, to spreads and cheese slices.
“We know South Africans love and respect our brand, but our top position in the Cheese Category also proves that they use and are loyal to our cheese brand, a vote of confidence we’re immensely proud of. Our commitment to quality remains Parmalat’s single most important production guideline and we thank South African consumers for their continued support.”
The 2013 TGI survey targeted 15000 consumers, representing more than 20 million adult South African consumers. Data was collected about more than 560 product categories, while 8000+ brands are included in the measurement.
*The TGI (Target Group Index) Icon Brands survey data was weighted using STATS SA’s population estimates. Enumerate Area sampling design was employed and the universe includes all communities with more than 8000 inhabitants, while the participants are older than 15. The TGI data collection partner is Ask Afrika, known for their total commitment to data integrity and excellence.
Parmalat’s commitment to quality once again got the nod at this year’s South African Dairy Championships. The annual event is the benchmark for local dairy products and Parmalat dominated it, emerging as the overall top performer for the third consecutive year by winning an incredible 16 SA Championship first prizes and three coveted Qualité awards.
A mere 12 products were honoured with the Qualité mark of excellence this year, compared to 26 in 2012. Parmalat’s top performance in this category was for its Simonsberg Mature Gouda, as well as the Mild Cheddar (White) and Salted Butter produced for Woolworths.
