Aviagen Australia fully invested in new facilities
Aviagen Australia took a major step forward in 2008 when the purchase of Bartter Enterprises great grandparent and grandparent operations was made with the objective of becoming an integral part of the local market by producing parent stock directly for domestic customers.
The second phase of the long term investment in the Australian market commenced with the announcement in August 2013 that Aviagen Australia was moving its operations to Goulburn. The company had broken ground on a recently acquired 850 acre block of land about 20 kilometers out of town for the construction of a new five farm facility designed to produce a growing supply of breeding stock for the future broiler industry in Australia. The company office will also be relocated and established in Goulburn over the coming months.
The project has now progressed following the construction of a new four kilometer road and a complete power supply into the property. Multiple poultry sheds have sprung up all the way along the road with Farm 5 housing the future great grandparent stock set for completion in March and for the immediate placement of birds ready to go into production. This will be followed later in the month by the three houses on Farm 2 and a further 3 houses on Farm 3 during April. The project will reach completion when all the sheds on Farm 1 at the entrance of the property and the two sheds on Farm 4 are standing and equipped for the initial intake of birds.
The new Braidwood Road farm is anticipated to be in full production in the fourth quarter this year and will supply in time roughly half of the Ross 308 parent stock volume required for the local market. The planning has been extensive with the completion of an environmental impact report designed to ensure zero effect on the environment through effective management of water runoff and also extensive separation of houses with the purchase of over four times the minimum area land normally required for a commercial operation. Setbacks are a minimum of at least 200 meters for the poultry sheds which consist of high quality design and components. Poured concrete floors, sandwich panel walls filled with fire retardant foam and smooth easy to clean surfaces, completely housed cables and a curved ceiling designed to optimise ventilation all contribute to the new, efficient production facility.
Aviagen has a history of investing in the rural communities not only through the acquisition of land and construction of production facilities, but also in hiring and training local people to fill good quality jobs in production, hatchery, technical service and administrative functions in the company. The farm alone is planning to increase staff by recruiting for 14 new jobs and by the end of 2015 another 15 jobs are likely when the new hatchery in Goulburn is expected to be finished.
“We are pleased with the progress on the production unit and the location, The lack of any poultry production facilities in the nearby area, a short 1 hour by road to the feed mill, 2 hours to Sydney and a strong interest in jobs from the local community all contribute to a desirable mix for running our day-to-day business,” commented Peter Hanna, general manager Aviagen Australia.
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