Artisanal Market buys Mundella and Margaret River brands
Artisanal Market has purchased the brands, equipment and processing sites of Mundella Foods and the Margaret River Dairy Company for an undisclosed amount. The two West Australian dairy businesses were placed into liquidation in August, leaving creditors owed millions of dollars.
The new owner plans to make yoghurt at the export-approved Metricup facility near Margaret River. Production is expected to begin before the Christmas period, with an initial annual output of about 2m litres. The site could eventually process up to 10m litres a year.
Artisanal Market will not use Mundella Foods’ former manufacturing plant at Mundijong, south of Perth. The company intends to preserve the facility rather than operate it because of its poor condition. Processing assets in both Perth and Margaret River were included in the sale.
Kevin Sorgiovanni, Artisanal Market’s managing director, founded Harvey Fresh, another Western Australian dairy and juice business. He said he had considered buying Mundella Foods and the Margaret River Dairy Company in 2023, when Manassen Foods sold them to The Cheeky Cow. That company has since collapsed.
“It hasn’t been an easy road,” Mr Sorgiovanni said. He described the two businesses as an opportunity for the South West and said the transaction would add value to Western Australia’s dairy market. Artisanal Market is jointly owned by PenAgri Group and Research Corporation.
The new owner also plans to seek sales in Asian markets. Mr Sorgiovanni said the immediate priority was to restore Mundella yoghurt to local shelves, while expanding beyond Western Australia remained an objective.
The transaction was welcomed by dairy farmers in southern Western Australia, although securing milk remains an issue. Ian Noakes, president of the WA Farmers Dairy Council, said most of the state’s milk was already committed under contracts. He said Artisanal Market might need to wait until an existing agreement ended before obtaining supply, and hoped increased competition would improve prices received by local farmers.
