Fonterra to use Microsoft Azure for business intelligence and growth

Fonterra to use Microsoft Azure for business intelligence and growth
Dairy cooperative will be one of the first major customers for Microsoft’s New Zealand data centre

Elly Yates-Roberts |


Dairy cooperative Fonterra has entered into a five-year digital transformation partnership with Microsoft to support its global growth plans. The organisation will migrate many of its operations to Microsoft Azure and will be one of the first major customers for Microsoft’s New Zealand data centre, when it is launched. 

By transferring data from its onsite data centres to the Azure cloud, Fonterra will be able gather and analyse more information in real time. The company is already trialling machine learning in detecting improperly sealed or faulty products, to improve quality and reduce waste. 

“The new platform aims to bring together all parts of Fonterra and build a culture around data,” said Piers Shore, chief information officer at Fonterra. “By capturing and integrating data across the organisation, this will create a foundation for actionable insight and enable Fonterra to deepen our relationships with farmers and customers, optimise our supply chain and manufacturing operations and deliver better products and services.” 

Fonterra will also be able to drive its sustainability efforts with the new partnership. “By shifting to a technology platform that will enable Fonterra to maximise its efficiency while using renewable resources, we’re also building on our sustainability commitments,” said Fraser Whineray, chief operating officer at Fonterra. “Microsoft’s pledge to use only renewable energy in its data centres aligns with our own long-term goals and provided another benefit to the partnership.”

Microsoft will also provide Surface devices to Fonterra employees to support business continuity and collaboration. 

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