Alan Wiseman bows out – as brother takes the helm

• Alan Wiseman has had over 30 years at the head of his father's dairy business. Picture: Complimentary

He will hand the over reins at the firm's AGM on 8 July but will continue to advise the company.

Robert, who is currently chief executive, will become executive chairman while the group's finance director, Billy Keane, will be promoted to managing director. Gerry Sweeney, currently deputy finance director, will replace him.

The changes were announced as the company unveiled record annual sales of 1.77 billion litres of milk, up 9.1 per cent on the previous year. Operating profits also jumped 43.1 per cent to 50.3 million in 2009, leading to a 20 per cent hike in the full year dividend to 18p per share.

The East Kilbride-based business put last year's record sales down to a number of significant contract wins following the demise of its rival Dairy Farmers of Britain, which went into receivership last summer. This included supplying an additional 116m litres of milk to The Co-operative Group.

Robert Wiseman is now the source of more than 30 per cent of the milk consumed every day in Britain and is well on the path to achieving its goal of annual sales of more than two billion litres.

Alan Wiseman said yesterday: "It is very pleasing to have the facilities and capacity in place to continue growth towards our near-term target of selling over two billion litres of milk a year.

"We have made steady progress improving our underlying operating margins in recent years and are committed to continuing this trend."

When the firm floated on the London Stock Exchange 16 years ago, it was, by contrast, distributing just 150 million litres a year.

Robert Wiseman also saw its annual revenues boosted by a sharp spike in the value of cream. The company sells cream to the European commodities market which saw prices rocket from an average of 980 per tonne in the first half of 2009, to 1,300 in the second half.

Although this was offset in part by increases in the price of diesel and plastics – which the firm uses for its packaging – the surge in cream prices resulted in a 5m net benefit last year.

Overall, cash generated from operations rose 23.6 per cent to 83.1m. The firm took the opportunity to reduce its net debt from 25.8m in 2008 to 21.1m although it continued to invest in its dairies and supply network, including ploughing 10m into its plant at Bridgwater, Somerset to increase capacity to 500m litres a year.

Alan Wiseman, 59, joined his father's firm straight from school in 1967 before taking control on his father's retirement in 1976.

In 1991 he took the decision to expand south of the Border before listing the firm in 1994.