The dairy industry over time. Safeguarding our interests - then and now

The work of the association representing Germany's dairy industry has a long-standing tradition. It was back in 1912 that a handful of pioneers from the German industry for milk powder joined forces to found the Association of German Powder-Milk Factory Owners. The aims of the association were highly pragmatic: The association wished to consolidate its standing vis-à-vis foreign competition by prescribing a protective duty and coming to agreement on prices and quantity restrictions.
During World War I, the powder-milk industry established numerous milk-drying plants and was thus in a position to make a considerable contribution towards safeguarding nutritional supplies for the population in the urban centres of the Rhine-Westphalia region. The era of the "Third Reich" saw the association temporarily disbanded. On 31 May 1949, however, the Association of Dairy Producers was registered within the United Economic Region.

The decades which followed saw the establishment of mergers and co-operations with other associations:

• 1974: Amalgamation with the similarly structured Association of German Industry for Cheese and Processed Cheese.
• 1984: Commencement of co-operations with the Federal Private Dairies Association of Germany – a co-operation between two partners who have remained independent and one which has proven successful to this day.
• 1988: The Export Union for Dairy Products joined the Association of Dairy Producers. Today, it makes up the association's foreign trade division. The members of this organisation are trading companies with a focus on importing and exporting and on the dairy processing industry.
• 1993: Once the new structure of eastern Germany's dairy-farm industry had become broadly discernible and, moreover, once a number of these enterprises in eastern Germany had installed management specialists from the western part of the country, a merger transpired with the Association of the Dairy Industry, Oranienburg (an organisation previously founded in eastern Germany ahead of German reunification). The eastern association had been modelled on the Association of Dairy Producers. It continued to closely oversee the rapid structural development of the dairy industry in that part of the country, though the job of representing its members' interests on a federal level was transferred to the hands of the Association of Dairy Producers (as had likewise been the case in the previous mergers described above).
• 1996: Merger with the Federal Association of Market Dairy Operators. Five years previously, this organisation had entered into a co-operation agreement with the Association of Dairy Producers, the aim of which agreement was to establish close and productive collaborations.
• 2005: Fusion with the Association of the Privat Dairy Producers.
  

Just like the dairy industry itself, so has the Association of Dairy Producers adapted its operations to ongoing structural changes. Membership by private, co-operative and multinational enterprises alike shows that the focus is not on the legal form of the association, but on commercial objectives. The Association of Dairy Producers has undergone considerable transformation over all these years. Its objectives, however, have not. Today, the association represents the interests of some 100 member companies. If we include our co-operation partners in the equation, the figures cover around 95% of all German dairy supplies, or 26 million tons of milk. The sector overall has a turnover of 20 billion euro, making it one of the sectors with the highest turnover in the German food industry.


How we see ourselves

"Lean management" is a term frequently used in the commercial and public sectors. Companies are adjusting to the new situation, and trade associations who take their jobs seriously are taking on more and more of the tasks traditionally assumed by the service departments in the companies. We realise, however, that we can only do so to a certain degree and that respect for in-house company know-how needs to be maintained.

The Association of the German Dairy Industry was quick to recognise and prepare itself (not least in terms of personnel) for this new part of its mission. Our qualified and motivated team is at the disposal of our members and acts as a professional point of contact for all sides. The work of a modern trade association entails coordination and representation of the interests of our members as much as it does consulting services for those members. As a broker between the industry, public administration, the political community and the scientific community, it is imperative to maintain close collaborations with dairy companies. Our first and foremost concern are the interests of our members.
The Association of the German Dairy Industry is both a representative for our members and a service provider

Dr. Karl-Heinz Engel
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Association of the German Dairy Industry