Yili Group appoints Alex Turnbull as CEO of five New Zealand companies

NEW ZEALAND – Yili Group has appointed Alex Turnbull as chief executive officer to lead its five New Zealand companies: Westland Milk Products, Oceania Dairy, Canary, EasiYo and Pure Nutrition.

Turnbull, an experienced New Zealand agribusiness executive, was previously CEO of Manuka Health, where he oversaw a business turnaround that improved profitability, cash flow and operational performance.

His past roles include senior executive and board positions at Fonterra, including managing director for Latin America, as well as leadership positions across global ingredients, nutrition and consumer businesses.

Li said: “Yili’s investment in our high-value strategy is continuing to reap dividends with extra production capacity in the high-value protein and fats categories, leading to increased global sales. Across a number of categories, demand continues to outstrip supply.”

“Alex brings with him more than three decades of senior leadership experience with a strong New Zealand focus across the global dairy and food sectors, spanning ingredients, consumer brands and foodservice.

“He has a mandate to strengthen performance, deepen farmer and customer partnerships, and support the long-term success of Yili’s New Zealand businesses.’’

Turnbull said that New Zealand plays a unique and important role in Yili’s global portfolio. He added that he was excited to be joining the business and to work closely with farmers, customers, and teams to build on the strong foundations already in place and to create enduring value together.

Yili’s subsidiaries report revenue growth of 16% in H1 2025

In 2025, Westland Milk Products and Oceania Dairy, dairy subsidiaries of the Yili group, have reported a 12% profit growth for the first half of 2025.

According to Yili, consumer butter production capacity at Hokitika (Westland Milk) has been boosted by 10,000 tonnes, while increased skim-milk powder production capacity at Glenavy (Oceania Dairy) has also led to increased production of UHT cream at Rolleston, with ODL cream now diverted to the Rolleston site.

The production capacity at Rolleston of UHT cream for the Chinese market has been boosted by 20% following an investment in a new silo and improvements to the unloading facility.

Executive Director Zhiqiang Li said profitability is expected to continue to climb for both companies well into 2026.

“Production capacity of high-demand, high-value products across Westland’s Hokitika and Rolleston sites and ODL’s Glenavy facility has undergone significant investment to capitalise on surging global demand for high-quality dairy products.”

Li said both Westland and ODL, which since 2024 have also operated under a co- operative external sales arrangement, are well positioned to build revenue growth off the back of increased production capacity.

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