Fonterra has continued its push towards global dominance by buying a stake in a Midwest cheese company.

DairiConcepts, a joint venture between Fonterra and Dairy Farmers of America, has bought the US hard Italian cheese business of co-operative Swiss Valley Farms (SVF).

The business was owned by SVF’s subsidiary Rochester Cheese and produces Italian cheeses for retail, foodservice and industrial customers.

Fonterra’s global ingredients and foodservices division managing director Andrei Mikhalevsky, also DairiConcept’s chairman, said the acquisition cemented the company’s spot as the number two player in the United States’ hard Italian cheese market.

“It will also bring a more diverse product and customer mix, with scale in fresh products,” he said.

“It will provide a number of strategic benefits and synergies for DairiConcepts, and there for Fonterra and its shareholders and it gives us a clear position in one of the fastest-growing and most attractive cheese categories in the US market.”

The acquisition of the business includes a plant a Dalbo, Minnesota.

Fonterra is the world’s biggest dairy exporter while Dairy Farmers of America is a milk products marketing organisation.

DairiConcepts makes and markets dairy and cheese products to commercial, food service and retail customers throughout the US and internationally.