Cliffhanger vote at Bega Cheese AGM

When Bega listed in 2011, a maximum shareholding limit of five per cent was put in place to allow the former farmer co-operative to keep predators at bay. 

That limit subsequently increased to 10 per cent and, after Tuesday's annual general meeting, it will increase to 15 per cent for five years, after which it will disappear.

A resolution to keep the cap in place passed by the narrowest of margins on Tuesday, with 37.9million votes for the cap and 37.7million votes against.

The large vote against suggested investors including Perpetual, Karara and New Zealand’s Fonterra voted to have it removed. 

Fonterra snapped up a 10 per cent stake in Bega during the takeover battle for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter (WCB) to protect its commercial relationships with the NSW based company.

However, it has been suggested Fonterra, which has previously been seen as an acquirer of Bega, is looking to sell its stake.

If the Auckland-based company did vote against the cap it implies it is indeed preparing to sell out and wants to improve liquidity in the stock before it starts to sell down. 

Such a move would raise big questions for the future of Fonterra's sizeable Australian business, which has been a dead weight on the company.

Dairy has been a red hot sector for takeover activity and both Parmalat and Saputo have declared their intent to keep buying businesses, while Freedom Foods and US outfit Deans Foods recently tried to buy ASX-listed a2 Milk.

Elsewhere, a Metcash spokesperson said around 30 positions have been declared redundant in the buying and promotional areas of the company.

The spokesperson said the new structure will ensure Metcash is better placed to service its customers. 

SHARES in vitamins group Blackmores jumped over the $200 mark after the company announced it is expanding beyond its core business to enter into the infant formula market through a partnership deal with ASX-listed Bega Cheese.

Blackmores, which has experienced an incredible rise in its share price over the past 14 months because of heavy demand for its vitamins and health supplements in China, will begin selling the new range of products, which also include nutritional foods, in early 2016.

Bega's subsidiary Tatura will be the manufacturer of the products which aim to capitalise on rising demand in China and other Asian countries for Australia's "clean and green" premium food and health supplements products, where the sourcing of ingredients is able to be accurately tracked.