Arla Foods is a farmer-owned cooperative, meaning it is owned by more than 7,600 dairy farmers from Denmark, Sweden, the UK, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands[3]. Governance is exercised democratically by its cooperative members, who elect representatives to participate in key decisions about the company’s direction[6]. Each member typically has one vote, regardless of their farm size[4].
In April 2025, Arla Foods and Germany’s DMK Group, another farmer-owned cooperative, announced plans to merge. If approved by cooperative members and regulators, this merger will unite over 12,000 farmer-owners under the Arla Foods name, creating the largest dairy cooperative in Europe[1][3][5].
Prior to this merger, Arla’s ownership structure already involved farmer-owners across multiple European countries, emphasizing cooperative values and shared benefit for its farmer members[3][2].