New Zealand Food Awards- Fonterra’s ‘Export-Only’ Win as French Dairy Giant Circles NZ

A UHT cream Kiwis can’t even buy has just won New Zealand’s top food award. Fonterra’s Easy Bakery Cream, a low-fat dairy formulation designed for Chinese bakeries, has taken the Supreme title at the 2025 New Zealand Food Awards. Brilliant science, yes. But when the winning cream is made for someone else’s fridge, it raises a fair question: whose food industry are we celebrating?

Because while Anchor (now being sold into the hands of French dairy behemoth Lactalis) cements NZ’s image as a pasture-fed powerhouse, the real spark of innovation this year came from non-animal dairy disruptors. Otis Oat Milk, Elta Ego’s alcohol-free adaptogenic cocktail, and Giesen 0% Chardonnay each signal a generational pivot, proof flavour, texture, and functionality can now be achieved without a drop of milk fat.

But there is a sharp irony here as Fonterra collects trophies for export-only cream and Anchor heads for foreign ownership, the brands shaping NZ’s next food identity are plant-powered, tech-infused, and proudly local. The cream of the crop may no longer come from the cow.

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