It is great to hear that Fonterra have committed to investing almost $12 million in upgrading their Tasmanian dairy plants.
The Hodgman Liberal Government has stood by our dairy industry through a couple of tough years and this significant commitment by Fonterra only proves Tasmania produces some of the nation’s best dairy products.
The total investment by Fonterra in North West Tasmania and Victoria is about $165 million across seven of their manufacturing sites – this demonstrates confidence is returning across the industry, as well as being a long term commitment to our farmers and the workers in the plants.
The almost $12 million commitment in Tasmania consists of $9.7 million for an expansion at the Fonterra Wynyard site to increase cheddar production by around 3900MT and $1.8 million to increase the lactose processing capacity at the Spreyton plant.
I look forward to seeing the works completed at both Wynyard and Spreyton, and what this might mean for increased employment in those regions.
Dairy is a pillar of Tasmanian agriculture valued at nearly $400 million at the farm gate and is a vital part of the Hodgman Government’s vision to increase the value of agriculture to $10 billion by 2050.
More Media Releases from Jeremy Rockliff
More Media Releases from the Minister for Primary Industries and Water