Mainland (cheese) facts for kids
 |
|
| Owner | Fonterra Co-operative Group |
|---|---|
| Introduced | 1954 |
| Markets | Worldwide |
Mainland Cheese is a popular brand of cheese. It is owned by a big New Zealand company called Fonterra Co-operative Group. You can find Mainland cheese in many places, like Australasia (Australia and New Zealand) and parts of America.
This cheese brand started as a family business in the South Island of New Zealand. People sometimes call the South Island the "mainland" because it is the biggest island in New Zealand. This is how the brand got its name!
Contents
The Story of Mainland Cheese
How Mainland Cheese Started
Mainland Products Ltd began in 1954. A person named Peter McConnon started the company. It grew very quickly. At first, the company made many different foods. These included fresh milk, processed milk, and, of course, cheese.
Mainland also made ice cream like Tip Top. They even made processed meats and other foods for people to buy.
Changes in Ownership
In the 1990s, another company called Kiwi Co-operative Dairies bought most of Mainland Products. This company was led by a person named Craig Norgate.
Later, in 2001, Kiwi Co-op joined with other companies to form Fonterra. Fonterra then bought the rest of Mainland Products in 2002. So, Mainland became part of the Fonterra family.
In 2005, Fonterra sold most of the original Mainland business. However, they kept all the parts that made cheese. Today, Mainland cheese is still part of Fonterra Brands. The other parts of the old Mainland company are now part of a different company called Goodman Fielder.
Mainland was a family business for a long time. Peter McConnon's sons, Baird and Alan, and his grandson, Simon, worked there. They kept it a family business until Fonterra bought it.
Mainland Cheese Advertising
Patience is Key
Mainland Cheese is famous for its advertisements. In New Zealand, their ads often talk about waiting and being patient. This is a clever way to show how cheese gets better with age. Just like good cheese needs time to ripen, some things in life need patience.
Playing with Words
In Australia, Mainland's ads often have fun with the New Zealand accent. For example, they might say "your frind in the frudge." This sounds like "your friend in the fridge." They also played on the sound of "cheese day" which sounds like "Tuesday." These ads are often funny and memorable.
See also
