Bendigo - A New Goldmine for Food Manufacturing
Tuesday, 26 June 2007
One of Australia’s first ever dedicated food manufacturing precincts is being established in East Bendigo.
Already the home to several food manufacturers, Bendigo is moving to fill a gap in the market for quality factories purpose built for food manufacturing and allied services.
The City of Greater Bendigo’s Manager, Business Development, Brian Gould, expects the new development to attract interest locally and from around Australia. Works for the provision of services to the site will commence in July 2007.
“Some of our existing food manufacturers are considering moving to the new site, and we expect others will want to take advantage of the ability to have a factory purpose-built to their specifications in a dedicated food precinct.”
Brian Gould said the 30 hectare greenfield site, buffered by the Bendigo Airport and Regional Park bushland, has been in development since 2002 and passed all the necessary environmental and planning approvals.
The food precinct is being developed by Bendigo Properties, a joint venture between Bensons Property Group and Hickory Developments.
Rick Curtis, Managing Director of Bensons Property Group, said the project would provide high quality facilities with integrated support services.
“Not only are we building the largest industrial development in Bendigo, but it will be also one of the most ecologically sustainable industrial parks in the state.
“Every element that has gone into this project is about quality, sustainability and commercial success. We’re looking forward to partnering with food manufacturers to provide them with facilities in a secure environment that will allow them to grow their business over the long term.”
Mr Curtis said Bendigo Properties offered food manufacturers a unique opportunity to have a facility constructed under various arrangements such as a lease or build-own-operate-transfer scheme.
“With the security of having a dedicated food precinct, we can be flexible in the way we work with manufacturers to provide them with an investment arrangement that’s going to suit them and their business now and into the future.”
For more details on the food precinct and opportunities available, contact Alan Bolton at Bendigo Properties on 03 8602 0800 or Brian Gould, Manager Business Development at the City of Greater Bendigo on (03) 5434 6137.
FOOD PRECINCT FEATURES
Features of the dedicated food manufacturing precinct include:
- Extensive infrastructure on site, including sealed road network and essential services
- Strategic access to road, rail and air transport
- World-class telecommunication capacities with high-speed links to site
- Large refrigeration and freezer facility on site
- The world’s best standard of micro-filtered water on tap
- Competitive energy costs
- Environmental sustainability through energy-efficient designs, waste water reuse, environmentally responsible building materials and energy-efficient fittings
- Suitability for small to medium food manufacturing, second-site factories for large manufacturers, contract manufacturing for generic products, strategic location for food-allied businesses such as packaging, warehousing, logistics, service trades and factory sales outlets.
FOOD FAST FACTS
- Location: Near Bendigo Airport, with direct access to 4 main highways, railway, and 90 minutes from Melbourne (Tullamarine) Airport.
- Size: 30 ha land with room for 12 factories
- Timeframe: Stage 1 building to commence in September 2007
- Developers: Bendigo Properties, a joint venture of Bensons Property Group and Hickory Developments
- Bendigo: Regional Victoria’s fastest growing city, population nearing 100,000
- Bendigo is in the centre of Victoria, on the junction of the Calder, McIvor, Midland and Loddon Valley Highways with easy access to Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney.
- Food manufacturers who already call Bendigo home include Rositas, Pasta Master, Tip Top Bakeries, Gillies Bros and Hazeldenes Chicken Farms.
