a2 Milk Company: Operational Strategies and Future Success Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the a2 Milk Company, focusing on its operational strategies and potential for future success within the agribusiness industry. It begins with an executive summary and table of contents, followed by an introduction to the agribusiness sector and a detailed examination of the a2 Milk Company. The report covers the company's history, including the discovery of A2 protein milk, its target market, organizational structure, and the unique recipe for its long-run business success. It delves into the company's marketing approach, highlighting its social media strategies and expansion into key markets such as China. The report also discusses the company's future success, emphasizing its investments, patented formula, and contributions to health research, particularly in the context of the global coronavirus pandemic. The report concludes with a summary of the company's potential to become a global leader in dairy products. The report references relevant sources throughout.

Running head: AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary
The purpose of the report is to understand the operational strategies of an agribusiness industry
and to forecast the future success of that industry. In the given paper the agribusiness industry,
which is selected is a2 Milk Company. The company details and history has been clearly
discussed in the report. The target market, organizational structure and the marketing approach
has been highlighted. The secret recipe of the company that has led to its huge success has also
been mentioned. The report clearly reflects the contribution of the organization towards the
health aspects of the human lives. It ends with the conclusion that the immense investment and
patent formula of the company will help it become a global leader in the coming future.

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Discussion........................................................................................................................................3
About the Company.....................................................................................................................3
History of the Company...............................................................................................................3
The target market.........................................................................................................................4
Organizational Structure..............................................................................................................4
The Long Run Business Success Recipe.....................................................................................5
Marketing Approach....................................................................................................................5
Future Success.............................................................................................................................6
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................6
References........................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
Agribusiness industry in general is related to farming but most specifically it means
businesses related to agriculture (Barnard, Foltz & Yeager, 2016). This type of business is
involved in manufacturing several products through direct agricultural outputs and marketing
them to the wholesalers, retailers and the consumers. Agriculture has always been important in
the development of Australia since the past. Australia still enjoys its dominance in production of
wheat and in sheep breeding (Clune, 2019). The market for cattle is gaining importance globally
now because of the rising health issues. The paper deals with one such “Agricultural Production”
industry – The a2 Milk Company.
Discussion
About the Company
a2 Milk Company produces fresh milk only from the hand-picked cows that naturally
produces the A2 protein. The previous name of the organization was the A2 Corporation. It is a
public company listed in the ASX200. Dr. Corran McLachlan and Howard Paterson founded the
company in the year 2000 in New Zealand. At present the CEO of the company is Jayne
Hrdlicka and David Hearn is the current Chairman (a2 Milk™, 2020). It deals with all kind of
dairy products, A2 milk as well as infant formula. The company has its presence in New
Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, USA, UK, China, Singapore and Malaysia.
History of the Company
Cows in the past time used to produce only A2 type beta casein protein but over the time
a natural mutation occurred and cows started to produce A1 protein. Variations in the genetics

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have resulted into the formation of mixed herd of cows and today most of the cows produce both
A1 and A2 proteins. Dr Corran McLahan performed research on health effects of A1 beta-casein
proteins and Howard Paterson on the other hand belonged to the richest classes in New Zealand,
who was involved in dairy farming as well (Bodnár et al., 2018). Both of these men joined
together and commercialised genetic test for determining if cows can produce A1 protein free
milk.
The target market
The target market for the company is not limited to a particular group. It has tried to
target all those people who are highly health conscious. Consumption of A1 proteins lead to
indigestion. Therefore the company has targeted basically the health conscious people. They
have positioned themselves as the only company who specialises in producing the A2 protein
milk through proper research and development. The positioning statement of the company is
also unique as it states “Helping people enjoy a better life” (a2 Milk™, 2020).
Organizational Structure
The organization is structured as the Board, the Management and the Employees. The
Board member constitutes the Chairman and non-executive directors. David Hearn, Julia Hoare,
Warwick Every-Burns, Jesse Wu and Pop Greenwood are the board members. The management
team is composed of Geoffrey Babidge as the Chief Executive Officer and Race Strauss as the
Chief Financial Officer. The management team is also composed of General Counsel and
Company Secretary, Chief People Officer, Chief Commercial Officer, Head of Strategy, Chief
Operations Officer and other chief executives and officers. The corporate governance statement
of the company states that the company ensures that all the directors, officers and the employees

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work together in harmony and function responsibly while protecting the shareholder’s interest at
the same time.
The Long Run Business Success Recipe
The recipes for the long run business success are the A2 protein and the infant milk. The
company created a demand for a healthy alternative in the minds of the consumers though its
marketing and expansion strategies. The company informed about the theory that most of the
dietary and digestive issues that takes place in our body is because of the A1 protein and it can
also lead to diabetes and serious heart conditions (Thakur et al., 2018). Dr. Corran McLachlan
developed a simple genetic test, which helped in identifying cows that would only produce A2
protein and then he patented it. McLachal even informed about the possibilities of schizophrenia
because of the A1 mil proteins. Another huge leap towards the success was because of the deal
between a2 and Fonterra that reshaped the global dairy (Esty & Fisher, 2019). This deal made the
brand explore in A2 milk branded butter and cheese and liquid milk sourced from China. It also
enabled them to invest in blending and canning facilities.
Marketing Approach
Implementing social media marketing is one part of the success story of the company. It
positioned itself as a healthy consumable. Australia already faces a number of health issues
relating to diabetes, obesity and heart diseases. The company easily captured the health
conscious market and made a huge Australian fan base of its product. It created a huge demand
for the a2 Platinum infant formula in China and South-East Asia. The consumers started sharing
their views and satisfaction on social media and the business took advantage of it. It invested
heavily on advertising in Australia and harnessed the social media in connecting Australia and
China and building the export fuse.

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Future Success
The a2 Milk success story has continued for a long time and the share prices have kept up
increasing. The shares went up by 10.84% in the mid December last year. The significant
investment in the marketing and social media has let the company grow in US and China. The
efforts and the patented formula will give it an immense opportunity to grow abroad as well.
Even in the global crisis today the company has contributed towards the research for a
Coronavirus vaccine. Immunity is a global concern now and the company has huge opportunity
to get a global market share. The company has donated 5 million RMB of a2 Milk dairy products
and 5 million RMB in cash to Shanghai Red Cross to fight against Coronavirus (a2 Milk, 2020).
Conclusion
It can be concluded that a2 Milk Company has got the opportunity to become a global
giant in dairy products because of its patented a2 protein test and the infant formula. The way the
company is investing in marketing and is exploring into the Chinese and the US market, it has
got immense success opportunities in the coming future.

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References
a2 Milk™. (2020). Milk that’s naturally all A2 - a2 Milk™ | Feel the Difference. Retrieved 30
March 2020, from https://a2milk.com.au/?
gclid=Cj0KCQjwjoH0BRD6ARIsAEWO9DsJNx0B38vS3phXLzZ0GeuVWI8LYPvfC7
K_56KHL08Qd401RB1j7-0aAn85EALw_wcB
Barnard, F. L., Foltz, J. C., & Yeager, E. A. (2016). Agribusiness management. Routledge.
Bodnár, Á., Hajzsér, A., Egerszegi, I., Póti, P., Kuchtik, J., & Pajor, F. (2018). A2 milk and its
importance in dairy production and global market. Animal Welfare, Etológia és
Tartástechnológia, 14(1), 1-7.
Clune, T. (2019). Conceptualising Sustainable Development of Agribusiness in Australia (No.
2186-2019-1370).
Esty, B., & Fisher, D. (2019). The a2 Milk Company. HBS Strategy Case, (719-424).
Thakur, A., Sharma, V., Aneja, B., Mohanty, A. K., & Malakar, D. (2018). WHAT TO
CONSUME: A1 MILK OR A2 MILK?. EVERYMAN’S SCIENCE, 366.