Gladstone Beef
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PROJECT: Gladstone Beef
A vertically integrated beef business (breeding to processing to export).
Situated on a freehold land of 340 hectares and leasehold land of 96 hectares.
Stage 1
► Sourcing composite cattle breeds from north and south of the Gladstone Beef site. The composite breeds produce high quality / premium beef products for select Asian markets.
► Underpinned by a long term pricing supply model to offer greater certainty to both the cattle producer and the processor.
► The objective of the dual- regional (north and south) supply strategy is consistent year round supply and reduce exposure to climatic risks.
Stage 2
► An integrated and highly efficient class leading processing and distribution facility.
► Capacity for 600-1,200 head per day.
► Adopting latest renewable energy technologies to generate own power needs and waste processing and recycling.
Stage 3
► Production of boxed beef products supply into high value consumer markets in select Asian countries.
► With long term supply agreements with a limited number of sophisticated in- country wholesale customers who have an effective and efficient in-country supply chain.
A vertically integrated beef business – via a mix of 100% asset ownership and long term strategic partnerships with other vertically integrated beef producers has the opportunity to:
► Drive a lower and stable overall cost of production.
► Achieve consistency of supply.
► Greater pricing certainty for cattle producers, the processor and the wholesale customer.
Strategic Location
The location of Gladstone Beef is strategically well placed for the efficient supply of cattle and export of final beef products to key Asian markets.
Gladstone Beef is located:
► in the Fitzroy region, Australia’s largest beef cattle region.
► for efficient and cost effective transport of cattle for processing and export of beef products to key Asian markets – currently, northern cattle producers truck export quality cattle to Brisbane for processing and export, which is a six hours drive south of Gladstone.
► in close proximity to the Port of Gladstone, with refrigerated containerised facilities planned to support growing regional industries.
► with access to a skilled manufacturing workforce in Gladstone.
Strategic appeal of the Gladstone Beef site
From the perspective of major vertically integrated producers of composite cattle, the Gladstone Beef location has merit with respect to shorter and thereby a more cost efficient route to market.
The location of Gladstone Beef also lends itself to securing a sustainable supply of cattle.
Critical for the efficient operation and sustainability of beef processing facilities/operations is the ability to consistently source – week-in-week out – the ‘right’ quality cattle at an acceptable cost/price.
The geographic location of Gladstone Beef supports a dual-region supply strategy – sourcing both southern cattle and composite breeds from the north through to strategically located feedlots.
The dual-region supply strategy reduces the processing facilities exposure to:
► Variability in seasonal condition; and
► Volatility in pricing.
Preliminary discussions with a cross section of supply chain participants – including vertically integrated producers and feedlot operators identified Gladstone being an ideal location for export of beef products, and there would likely be interest from major vertically integrated producers and other supply chain partners to invest in their own assets to be part of an integrated supply chain into a Gladstone processing facility.
The Gladstone Beef site is favourably located 12km west of Gladstone, Central Queensland, and sits in the heart of Fitzroy region. The site:
► Has direct highway access, main road frontage and direct access to a rail siding;
► Has major arterial road networks for the efficient transport of supplies and products; and
► Is in close proximity to the Gladstone Port facilities for export of products via container ship – the Gladstone Ports Corporation is receptive to investing cold storage facilities and associated infrastructure at Auckland Point, subject to sufficient volumes.
Site and facility
The 436 hectare site is zoned High Impact Industry. The Gladstone Beef processing facility is designed as a ‘class leading’, in contrast to many existing outdated processing facilities in Queensland.
► The physical site of the facility has a capacity to process in excess of 1,200 head per day. The proposed operation will see 800 head per day processed over a single shift with a total of 307 operational staff.
The ‘new generation’ processing facility is designed to deliver a low cost of production via:
► Minimising labour and/or wastage – by integrated and automated/robotic processing, storage and distribution. The proposed equipment and saystems adopted in the facility is designed to improve efficiencies in the boning room of between 15% and 30% relative to current practices and systems adopted in current facilities.
► Adoption of renewable energy including:
–An on-site solar farm with 78 mega watt capacity;
–A hydrogen plant utilising waste water from the processing facility, working on a 6 hour shift, producing 2,053,000 kg of hydrogen per annum;
–A biodigester for gas generation to boiler equipment; and
–Sustainable waste processing and recycling facilities with zero waste to landfill.
