Forbes #656. NSW

Located southwest NSW, built in the 1950’s, owned and operated by Japanese 1988 to 2003. Plant required significant capital upgrades which the owners were not prepared to do and it closed in 2003. Talk of reopening in 2013.

Other Names

• Lachley meats

Current Operation

• Unknown

Location   

• Forbes is located approximately 600km east of Sydney in central NSW, Abattoir located in the Lachlan valley.⁴

Hema Maps – Australia Truckies atlas.

Owner

• Lachley Meats ( when closed 2003)¹
  • Owned from 1988-2003⁴
  • Japanese owned – The Hannan Corporation²
• Tasman Group⁴
  • Currently operates other abattoirs.⁴

Operation   

• export beef works²
• Specialised in grainfed beef for Japanese and Korean Markets⁵
• 170ha site, that is 8km from the CWLX livestock selling centre¹⁴.

Source – ‘Abattoir industry in disastous state’ ABC Rural. 16.02.2010.
Forbes abattoir also known as Lachley meats.

History of Forbes #656.

1950’s

• Built

1987

• Liberalisation of Japanese beef markets meant reduced import quotas and reduced import tariffs over the next 3 years. (Pg 82)⁹

1988

• Plant in operation at this point¹.
• Lachley meats take over²
  • Trading company Mitsubishi were important investors in Australian beef cattle lot feeding and were involved in ‘paddock to plate’ supply chain control. Mitsubishi invested in Lachley meats and Mid Coast Meats – Macksville NSW.(Pg 124)⁷
  • Japanese firms invested in Australia feedlots and processing facilities especially in QLD, in order to supply the liberalised Japanese market, to ensure product quality and safety standards and to create a more secure supply chain for their parents in Japan (pg 123)⁷
  • Cattle feedlots in Australia had increased in the 1960’s solely to supply the Japanese markets, when the 1974 (Oil Crisis) occured massive losses occured to Australian feedlotters and producers with little impact on the Japanese buyers as they had little equity in the investments. When trade was rebuilt Japanese importers had to invest in the feedlots to share some of the risk (Pg 81)⁹

1997

• At this point Forbes abattoir is Aus-meat registered as an Export Beef, sheep facility¹¹
  • Operator – Lachley meats (Forbes) P/L¹¹

2003

• August. Abattoir closes.¹
• 170 permanent employees, plus another 70 part-time¹
  • company committed to meet all workers entitlements¹
• Another article cites 300 jobs were lost due to the Forbes abattoir closure
• Forbes abattoir at one stage had employed up to 450 people¹⁴
  • 4.5% of the then Forbes population¹⁴
• Unlike Cities of Geelong and Illawarra when Ford factory and Bluescope steel closed, Forbes didn’t receive anywhere near the same level of government support¹⁴.
  • Both cities had received about $25M together¹⁴.
• Lachley closed operations rather than invest in capital in a plant that had a bad trading history since 1988¹
• Japanese owned pulled the plug on further financial support.²
  • citing high operating costs of an aged plant²
  • shortage of labour²
  • capital requirements needed to comply with by-products results since acquisition in 1988²
• Hannon Corporation was the 2nd largest importer of beef into Japan³
  • Owned a plant in Japan that could process up to 150,000 head a year³
• Increased tariff on beef imports by Japan earlier had claimed it’s first Australian victim³
  • Major factors are the economic situation in Japan³
  • Situation in Australia and markets is exasperated by the drought³
• All creditors and liabilities will be paid out in full²
• Abattoir had closed and re-opened 3 times in the last 20 years.²
• Local council willing to help to facilitate sale of plant as abattoir or conversion to some other type of factory⁶
  • Money was available for industrial developement⁶
  • Special abattoir displacement retraining fund to help retrain people through TAFE⁶
  • Assist in reducing costs of worker’s compensation, public liability and insurances overall, “..because abattoirs pay right at the top of all those services and that is working against abatttoirs in general” Member for Lachlan Ian Armstrong.⁶
• Closure of the abattoir would impact by taking a major premium buyer for cattle out of the market throughout the region.⁶
• December. Abattoir sold to Tasman Group services.⁴
• Tasman Group also operate Brooklyn (Vic) and Altona (Vic), Yarrawonga (NSW) Longford (Tas) and King Island (Tas)⁴
  • Also feedlot Yambinya – Wakool⁴

2010

• • Six red meat abattoirs in Central NSW have closed since 2003¹³
  • Outlook for the sector looks bleak¹³
    • “It’s disastrous. There are too many processing abattoirs out there and not enough animals to slaughter” Neville Newton, Goulburn abattoir operator¹³
• There are currently 29 red meat abattoirs in NSW, down 30% 10 years ago¹³

2011

• May. Equipment from the Killarney #22Q. QLD abattoir is used to refurbish Forbes¹⁰
  • Equipment is kept in storage and not actually installed but is included in sale deal offered September 2016¹⁴
• Sale of facility is thought to have occurred about this time – Australian owner¹⁴.

2013

• Abattoir to be re-opened, had be closed last decade.⁸
• Will be over 12 months before improvements are carried out and plant in operation.⁸

2014

• NSW Government is questioned if it will offer potential buyers of the Forbes abattoir financial assistance¹².
  • Governments reply – Mr Ian Armstrong, Minister of Regional Development, Minister for the Illawarra and Minister for Small business answers that the NSW government would be willing to work with any potential buyer of Forbes abattoir¹²
  • Grafton #157 NSW had received financial assistance in the past¹²

2016

• September. Forbes abattoir attracted strong overseas investment enquiry – principally Chinese¹⁰
  • With a view to re-opening as a beef processing plant¹⁰
  • Half of the 10 or so interested parties in the purchase were overseas interests¹⁰
    • Looking to vertically integrate¹⁰
• Some investors looking to demolish the plant entirely and build a brand new facility¹⁴
  • One Korean interest is looking for an Australian shareholder partner¹⁴
• Other facilities in Australia listed for sale at this time
  • Coonabarabran #388. NSW

Source ‘Three meat processing plants hit the market…’ Beef Central 14.09.2016

Forbes abattoir

• Three abattoirs are on at the market in Australia at this time¹⁴.
  • Forbes #656 NSW
  • Geraldton #104 WA
  • Sarina. QLD
• Equipment removed from the Killarney abattoir in 2011 kept in storage is included in the sale deal offered at this time¹⁴
• Current owner of Forbes abattoir is thought to have owned the site for 4-5 years¹⁴.
• Stockyards, ponds and office infrastructure are intact at this point in time¹⁴
• October 6. Forbes abattoir site is auctioned¹⁴

Source Ian Simpson Property sale advert.

2018

 

Sources of Forbes #656

1. ‘Dubbo stands while Forbes falls’ Daily Liberal. 21.08.2003
2. ‘Meat jobs go at Forbes’ The Land. 28.08.2003
3. ‘Agriculture’ The World trade review. 16-30 September 2003
4. ‘Abattoirs revived’ Stock and Land 24.12.2003
5. ‘Meatworks jobs saved’ The Land 25.12.2003
6. ‘Council offers aid as abattoir closes’ ABC News 22.08.2003
7. ‘Japanese investment in the World economy: extract’ Roger Farrell.
8. ‘Forbes council confirms towns abattoir be re-opened after a decade in mothballs.’ ABC Rural. 30.08.2013
9. World on a plate. Stephen Martyn 2014
10. ‘Chinese still showing interest in processing assets’ Beef Central 04.10.2016
11. Aus meat registration list July 1997
12. http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au. Questions 18.09.2003
13. ‘Abattoir industry in disastrous state’ ABC Rural 16.02.2010
14. ‘Three meat processing plants hit the market – What’s behind it? Beef Central 14.09.2016
15. https://www.ruralview.com.au/Real-Estate/1-lachley-street-forbes-nsw/Property-Details-buy-rural-10479908.html. viewed 04.03.2018