First Milk has reported growth in both turnover and operating profit, with the co-op's turnover reaching £476 million, an increase of £20m compared to the previous year.

The co-operative has released its annual financial report for the year ending March 2024, 31, revealing an operating profit of £16.8m, up from £5.1m in 2023.

Capital investment across its facilities rose to £8.4m, up from £7.4m in 2023, and total group capital and reserves increased to £58.5m, compared to £46.7m in 2023.

First Milk stated that its investments over the past year have primarily focused on enhancing strategic capabilities to offer new avenues for maximising value and returns for its farmer members.

The acquisition of BV Dairy, a Dorset-based specialist in chilled dairy products, was finalised in February 2024.

A new partnership was also established with Yeo Valley to create the Naturally Better Dairy Group, which supplies a milk pool produced by regenerative dairy farmers in South-West England.

Capital expenditure rose by 13.5% to £8.4m, facilitating operational improvements and completing a project at First Milk’s Lake District Creamery to produce specialist protein ingredients in collaboration with Arla Food Ingredients.

First Milk’s chief executive, Shelagh Hancock, noted that despite broader economic and geopolitical challenges, the co-op delivered strong performance over the last year.

“Our focus remains on developing and creating value for our members, helping deliver resilience against the many challenges we face," she said.

“This year has seen us broadening our capability with capital investment to access the specialist protein market, and the strategic acquisition of BV Dairy, extending our market reach into the food service sector and product mix, into fermented products and creams.”

Additionally, Ms Hancock mentioned that First Milk members have made significant progress over the past 12 months in advancing their regenerative farming practices with support from its customers.

She added: “I’m also encouraged to see regenerative farming becoming more widely understood and invested in across the UK food sector, with an increasing number of brands and retailers supporting its development.

“We remain confident that its tangible outcomes will help to solve the climate, nature and biodiversity crises and improve farm resilience and we are pleased to be leading in this area.

“Ultimately, our vision for the future is clear – we are working to enrich life every day to secure the future for our members, colleagues, customers and communities."