Camooweal

Australian Abattoirs, Camooweal, Central QLD, Queensland 19/07/2013 Leave a comment

Current Operation

  • Operating (2012)

Location             

  • NT/SA border, 190 km NW of Mt Isa

Australia. Camooweal

Owner                 

  •  

Operation          

  • Small local processor who supplies own butchers shop1

History                

 

Sources

  1. ‘Northern Australian beef Industry – Assessment of risks and opportunities’ ABARE. 2012.

Berrimah

Australian Abattoirs, Berrimah, Northern Territory, Top End 02/07/2013 Leave a comment

Authors Note – May be confusion in Darwin timelines as a packing plant was built and a number of abattoirs.Some articles contradict in dates therefore timeline may be inaccurate.

Other names

  • Angliss abattoir
  • Berrimah Abattoir
  • Central abattoirs5
  • Darwin abattoir (Pg 189)
  • 10 mile abattoir (Pg 190)

Current Operation             

  • reopened 1960’s3
  • Closed 1970’s for a period
  • Was operating in to the 1980’s9
  • site is closed and has been redeveloped now, 2013

Location             

  • Ten Mile abattoirs reserve5
  • Is an Angliss Road, Berrimah, off the Stuart Highway, south of Robbie Robbins reserve.

Australia. Berrimah

Map - Berrimah

Owner                 

  • North Australian Meat Company1
  • Sir William Charles2
  • Vesty’s (1934)

Operation          

  • Export and Domestic accredited11

History                

  • Sir William Charles (1865-1957)– Migrated from England, Engaged in butcher trade in Kent when young. Migrated to Roackhampton (QLD) 1884. Moved to Melbourne and opened two butcher stores in 1886.He began to export meat. Over the next 30 years became a dominant figure in Australian meat export trade. Sent meat to WA goldfields, latter to forces in South Africa and Britain. Built his own freezer works in Footscray 1905. Exported to NZ, opened offices in London and Liverpool. Brought meatworks in Forbes 1914 and Riverstone, Sydney 1920, Brisbane 1924 and with a rival (F.J. Walker) in Rockhampton 1927. Leased and bought cattle stations in 3 eastern states with Sir Kidney Kidman. Purchased QLD properties owned by the government in 1929. QLD properties could support 80,000hd. 1930’s claims William Charles owned the largest personally controlled  meat enterprise in the British Empire. 1933 Vestey’s acquired his Vic and the whole Angliss meat business except the QLD properties.

1934  

  • Vestey’s purchased Angliss meat business for £1.5M2
  • Improvements in refrigeration now made it possible to send chilled rather than frozen product6

1942 

  • Government requested in early days of war that Bovril (VRD) supply 400 head to Darwin per month at £5 each. Few stockmen left due to labour shortage and Bovril had difficulty filling this order7

1959     

  • Improved to meet stringent USDA (USA Dept of agriculture) hygiene regulations4
  • Combined with Katherine – capacity of 60,000hd per year, first time NT had export killing capacity3

1961 

  • William Angliss and Co began building Central Abattoirs at Ten Mile abattoir reserve. This was to serve as a central killing works for Darwin with the aim of adding an export annex5

1960’s

  • Angliss began to trial Buffalo, product shipped to Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan and some into the domestic market.(Pg 44)13
  • At this time feral buffalo could be shot in the field and the meat used for export as long as the carcase was at an abattoir within an hour(Pg 44)13

1964  

  • Prior to this abattoir (1963) and Katherine abattoir (1964) being built stock were walked along stockroutes to railheads in Alice Springs or across to Wyndham abattoir, QLD. Murranji stockroute last stock use was 1967 as cattle now went to Katherine and Darwin8
  • During this period road transport began to dominate and stock routes less used8
  • Vesteys opened4
  • Paid 6 shillings and half pence a pound, Hong Kong export market couldn’t afford to match paying 5 shillings and half pence a pound4

1965

  • Robert Bright would capture wild baby pigs feed up and sell to Berrimah (then called Angliss abattoir) (Pg 241)12

1968

  • Laurie Howard supplied Buffalo’s from Dorisvale station (then managed by Leo Whitely) (Pg 189)12
  • Manager at abattoir – George Welch, took over from Peter White (Pg 190)12

1970’s

  • Buffalo were now required to be to delivered live to an abattoir for slaughter.(Pg 44)13

1980

  • Berrimah abattoir not in operation (Pg 245)12

1970        

  • Couldn’t meet USDA standards – lost export licence, so did Broome,Derby, Wyndham and Katherine3

1991

  • Berrimah closes.10

 

Sources

  1. ‘100 years of Northern Beef production’ Nth QLD Register 22.11.12
  2. Angliss, Sir Willam Charles – Australian Dictionary  of Bigraphy.
  3. ‘Sailing ahead’ Annabelle Coppin 2009
  4. ‘The Australian Livestock export trade’ Nigel  Austin 2011
  5. ‘Wild Cattle, Wild Country’ Ann Marie Ingham 2007.
  6. ‘The Rise and fall of the house of Vestey’ Phillip Knight 1993.
  7. ‘The Big Run – The story of VRD station’ Jock Makin 1970.
  8. ‘The Murranji track – Ghost road of the drovers’ Darrell Lewis. 2007
  9. Personal communication of person who supplied abattoir. 04.11.13.
  10. ‘New abattoir for $500,000’ Top Paddock newsletter #1 Sept 1993
  11. NT DPI Annual records dated 2000.
  12. ‘The Privileged Few’ Jeff Hill. 2008
  13. ‘World on a plate – A history of meat processing in Australia’ Stephen Martyn 2013

Katherine #1

Australian Abattoirs, Northern Territory, Top End, Uncategorized 02/07/2013 Leave a comment

 

Other Names

  • Bovril meatworks

Current Operation

  • Never completed to start operations.

Location

  • 300km S of Darwin, Victoria Hwy Katherine 3km

Australia. Katherine

Map. Katherine. jpg

Owner

  • Bovril Australian Estate (English) owned VRD at the time(1947)

History

  • An abattoir was begun to be built and due to lack of government backing was stopped and demolished before even finished

Katherine. Bovril.Source – Northern Territory Library

Katherine #1 Abattoir – Bovril works, Photo dated 1951. construction was never completed

Is now the site of BOC gas, Bovril Street. Cement posts are still evident but roof is now a flat roof.

1947

  • Bovril moved equipment and some infrastructure from Manbulloo site1
  • Bovril leased 2,260 acres, land close to racecourse area and began erecting ‘Bovril meat extraction plant’2
  • Meatworks never used. Rumour was Vestey’s were going to take over or Bovril Estates3

1949  

  • Project abandoned – Cost £300,0004

1951     

  • Extraction plant construction stopped and started several times finally abandoned 3rd January 19512
  • “To this day, the enormous concrete shell still stands, only now it houses a multitude of trades, including a panel beating shop, a mechanic and a furniture factory. Also standing a short distance up the road, are the staff quarters and engineer’s house which were erected by Bovril and which are now part of a caravan park”2

1952            

  • Victorian company Preston Meatworks & William Say & co. Considered purchase of Bovril equipment to build a plant between Elliott & Darwin, small scale to start them to eventually process 30,000 hd a year4. This never happened!

Source

  1. ‘Pastoral Australia: Fortunes, Failures & Hard Yakka: A historical view.” M. Pearson, J Lennon. 2010
  2. ‘Katherine abattoir finally put down’ ABC rural 15.09.11
  3. ‘Meat Monopolies’ Northern Standard 07.03.47
  4. ‘Meatworks project for N. Territory’ The Canberra times. 21.11.52

Surat

Australian Abattoirs, Queensland, Southern QLD, Surat 27/06/2013 Leave a comment

Updated. 27th June 2013

Other Names

  • Warro Games Meat1

Current Operation

  • Is operating as at June 2013.1
  • Operates as a Kangaroo processing site.1

Location

map SuratSource – Hema Maps. Australia Truckies Atlas

Owner

  • L. Micklebourgh & B Micklebourgh.1

Operation

  • Processes 1500 kangaroos a week for human domestic consumption and pet food markets2
  • Employs 22 full time2
  • supplies fillets on weekly basis to wholesaler who distributes to Adelaide, Melbourne & Sydney2
  • Produce manufactig meat – 12 t per week – mainly goes to pet stores.2
  • Each carcase for human consumption is worth $37 to processor2
  • Kangaroo processors pay levy to Dept of Agriculture – Fisheries and Forestry3
    • 7c per carcase for human consumption3
    • 3c/kg for pet meat3
    • Levy money is distributed to national residue survey and R & D3
      • Human consumption carcases processed collected $210,000 (2010 – 2013)3 = 3M carcases
      • Pet food processed collected $30,000(2010-2013)3 = 1M kg processed
      • R & D – one project in current study – $240,000 “welfare and humaneness of commercially harvested kangaroos”, conslude August 20133
  • Kangaroo Industry Association of Australia (KIAA)3

History

Prior

  • Had been other kangaroo works in QLD but many have closed down2

1980’s

  • Had started in skins trade and had begun a pet food supply business.2

2004 – 2008

  • height of pet food business was processing 40t of meat a week.2
  • Operation to which the pet food was going centralised and changed demand of meat to cause orders to dwindle2
  • requirements came in that even pet food processing plants had to be accredited to process meat to human consumption standards2
  • Surat works was purchased, renovated.2

2009

  • QLD Floods caused business to be completely surrounded by water and shutdown for 3 months2
  • Russian markets closed down that roo meat was exported too.2
  • Domestic market became flooded with roo meat product.2

2010

  • Floods cut off access around site for 3 months2

2011

  • Floods cut off access around site for 3 months2

2013

  • Predicted increase in electricity prices could ultimately shut down the business1
    • Electricity has more than doubled in past 3 years.1
    • currently $22,000 per quarter1
    • Doesn’t include chiller 6 boxes that cost $1,000 each a quarter to operate1
  • Floods and debt load has had devasting effect on operation of business.2
  • Second largest employer in town behind Council.2

Sources

  1. ‘Power price rise crippling’ QLD Country life 06.06.13
  2. ‘Surat processor hops ahead’ QLD Country life 06.06.13
  3. ‘Market working on big issues’ QLD Countrylife 06.06.13

Kangaroo Island (SA)

Australian Abattoirs, Kangaroo Island, South Australia 25/06/2013 Leave a comment

Other Names

  • KI Abattoir

Current Operation

  • Closed – 19981

Location

Owner

  • Samex Australian Meat Company, Managing Director – Rob Black. Purchased early 20131

Operation

  • Previously had operated seasonally for 5-6 months of the year2
  • Would require a combined throughput of 5000 sheep and lambs each week over a 9-10 month period to sustain the operation1

History

2013

  • Samex Australian Meat Company purchased1
  • May. discussion with producerson ability to commit to supply, producers were able to do 100,000 lambs but thought 200,000 was unrealistic1
  • Samex not looking for investors but commitment from growers to support2
  • Current production was required to be changed from over a 4-5 month period to 9-10 month1

Sources

  1. ‘KI abattoir Interest grows’ The Land. 02.05.13
  2. ‘Crunch time for Kangaroo Island abattoir’ The Islander 09.04.13.

Robb Jetty

Australian Abattoirs, Peel Region, Robb Jetty, Western Australia 24/06/2013 Leave a comment

Other names

  • Fremantle Freezing and Meat works7

Current Operation

  • Closed, is now a historic site with a preserved chimney of the original meat processing works.6

coogee-chimney-01-2012

Source – http://www.mingor.net/

Robbs Jetty meat processing site, historic chimney that has been preserved at the site.

Location              

  • Fremantle Freezing and meat works7

Australia. Robb Jetty

Map. Robb JettySource – Hema Maps. Australia Truckies Atlas.

Owner

  • Fremantle Freezing and Meat Works7
  • Western Australian Meat Preservers7
  • Western Australian Meat Exporters7

                               

Operation

  • Processed cattle and sheep
  • Had access from sea for unloading barges and railhead for inland animals
  • Export2
  • Operated originally by the WA Meat co-operative
  • had a long pier/jetty going to the ocean – named Robs Jetty.
  • Cattle transported from North WA, barges would unload onto jetty and animals walk to abattoir.
  • Closed due to population pressure, other abattoirs & prices

 History          

1850’s

  • Meat houses constructed in the area to service the convict establishment at Femantle Gaol7

1894 

  • Duracks (Kimberley’s) through agents Francis Conner and Dennis Doherty shipped cattle to Fremantle5
  • Dame Mary Durack- ‘Sons in the saddle’ – cattle originally swam to shore, now offloaded onto a jetty5
  • Cattle getting £3 a head in south markets, started their own Live Export to Manila5
  • Slaughterhouses established in the area, known as ‘Kimberley Meat Ring’, they had a monopoly on meat supply to metropolitian and Goldfields7.
    • Forrest, Emaual and Co
    • Conner, Doherty and Durack

1898

  • Railway was built from Fremantle to Robb Jetty6
  • Same period abattoir was built in Fremantle – consisted of offices, holding yards, freezer and chiller facilities6

1919

  • Robb Jetty constructed – prior to construction animals unloaded into the water and swam to shore7
  • Robb jetty abattoir constructed, portion being the preserved chimney – Known as Fremantle Freezing and Meat works. Capacity limited to few thousand lambs per year7
  • Abattoir also was cold store for potatoes, fruit, manufactured ice and carried out wool scouring7

1940

  • Robb Jetty company in financial strife, Commonwealth government stepped in to provide help.7

1942

  • Company bought out by government, changed name to Western Australian Meat Preservers’ latter to ‘Western Australian Meat Exporters’7
  • Abattoir diversified to include fruit storage, egg pulp, turtle and crayfish processing7

1966  

  • Ship – Centaur,passenger liner that carried 4000 sheep below decks. turned every fortnight from Singapore, Kuala Lumpar & Perth, return trip would pick up at Broome from Emaual stations and taken to Fremantle, sold at Robbs Jetty saleyards5 Pg 25

1970’s

  • Jetty dismantled, possibly in 1960’s6

1988/89     

  • Abattoir closed by the National Party3

1992

  • Numerous attempt to revive competitiveness failed and was shut down7

1994

  • Equipment removed from building.7
  • Chimney is only part remaining, listed on the State register of Heritage Places.6

1996

  • State Government supplied $50,000 for restoration of chimney.7

Sources

  1. Personal Communication #1 28.01.13
  2. Parliament Hansard. S. Thomas. 17.08.05
  3. Parliament Hansard M Trenorden 17.08.05
  4. ‘Brief History of the WA Lamb Marketing board’ www.wammco.com.au
  5. ‘The Australian Livestock export trade’ Nigel Austin 2011
  6. ‘South Fremantle, Western Australia’ Wikipedia, 24.06.13
  7. ‘Interim Heritage listing for Robb Jetty Chimney’ Richard Lewis, Ministerial Media statement. 23.08.96

Cowaramup

Australian Abattoirs, Cowaramup, Peel Region, Western Australia 23/06/2013 Leave a comment

Current Operation

  • Closed November 20092

Location              

  • 11km north of Margaret River.

Australia. Cowaramup

Map. Cowaramup

Owner               

  • Western Meat Processors, Director – F.E Lee3
    • General Manager, J Mc Quillan2

Operation

  • Processed Cattle1
  • Employs 452
  • Workers numbers 572

 

History

2005

  • Western Meat Processors begun operations at Cowaramup2

2009

  • March. Expansion worth $750,000, would provide increased slaughter throughput in late 2009.2
  • November 16th. Closed due to plant where carcases were processed destroyed by fire and not other plants available to process meat.2
  • O’Conner Meat factory4.
    • Owned by Western Meat Packers, located in McNeece Place, O’Conner, established 27 years.
    • Owner of O’Conner, Rod Russell also owned lamb processing plant in Osbourne park
    • Employed 300 people.
    • Fire was caused by an electrical fault in an exhaust system, caused $10M damage
    • were processing 2000 head of cattle a week
  • Staff undertook maintenance work until December, when facility was shut down entirely, future work in January would continue maintenance.2

2011

  • Licence issued 3rd February 2011to operate the works prescribed under the Environmental Protection Act. Issued for an extended period of 3 years5
    • Licence #L8036/1993/5. File SWB2063.
    • Category 15:Abattoir
    • Category 55: Livestock saleyard or holding pen

Sources

  1. WAMIA Meat Processors 2013
  2. ‘Cowaramup abattir to remain closed’ Farm Weekly 10.12.09
  3. http://www.mantra.com
  4. ‘Fire causes $10M damage to O’Conner meat factory’ Perth Now. 16.11.09.
  5. Environmental Protection Licence. Government of WA – Dept of Environment and conservation
  6. ‘Abattoir capacity in WA’. Letter by Terry Redman. Minister for Agriculture and Food. 18.03.09

Waroona

Australian Abattoirs, Peel Region, Waroona, Western Australia 23/06/2013 Leave a comment

Waroona abattoir is located in south west of Western Australia. Prior to closure in 1998 it had been export accredited and processed sheep, goats and pigs. In 2014 Gina Rhinehart purchased 50% share of the facility with current owners Milne Agrigroup.

Other Names

  • Clover Meats8

Current Operation

  • Closed. Most recently – 20093

Location              

 Australia. Waroona      Map.Waroona           

Owner

  • Clover Meats
  • Milne Agrigroup5
  • Timepath Holdings7
  • South West Meat Processors (SWMP), D. Delaney3
  • Liveringa Station Beef. (2014) – Joint venture between Gina Rhinehart and Milne Agrigroup8

Operation

  • Still operational as at June 20051
  • Cattle and Pig2
  • Process sheep, goats & Pigs, registered as a domestic abattoir4
  • Prior to closure was handling 12% of WA cattle2
  • Was accredited export, once closed only left EG Green & sons as export accredited at 1998 (Harvey #648)2
  • Markets in Asia and US suffered downturns factor in closure2

History

Prior 2008

  • could have applied for government grants to introduce technology to reduce kill costs, “would have kept the jobs of many of their workers, one area where abattoir owners have fallen down or have not considered the opportunities which would have been created by the lower costs those technologies would have bought about”2
  • “Once it began slaughtering pigs it denied itself exports to certain sheep markets because Muslim countries don’t accept sheep meats killed in a pig abattoir”2

 1998  

  • Prior to closure was one of WA’s biggest export abattoirs7
  • closed for a period2

2007

  • Abattoir had been dormant for some time but current owneres (Milne Agrigroup) in discussions with several groups5
    • To sell entirely or
    • work in partnership to operate the plant, Milne Group won’t be operating plant on their own.

2008

  • June. Reopened6
  • To be only operated as service kill7
    • Aim to process 1000 sheep, 200 pigs per day initially, with possibiity to process cattle latter.
    • offering a 12 month contract up front, guarantees kill space
    • Most other abattoirs are processing their own product with only small service kill
  • Operated in conjunction with Delaney Meats also owned by D. Delaney6
  • Killing sheep and pigs, with capacity for 500 cattle a day

2009  

  • Closed 13.02.09. Economic downturn cited as reason3
  • South West Meat Processors called in liquidators cited6
    • lack of support from industry.
    • Delaney meats also closed but not subject to liquidation

“It was a lack of stock and the world market has not helped, Service kill contracts had backed off 50% and the value of skins had plummeted due to the slowdown in the global economy, the price of skins fell from $7.50 to $3 overnight” Daniel Delaney (60% share of SWMP)6

  • 40 people lose jobs3
  • 42 redundancies6

2014

  • Gina Rhinehart – Australian mining magnate enters into a joint investment to purchase 2 Kimberley cattle stations and the Waroona abattoir8
    • 50% stakeholding with Milne Agrigroup – Graham Laitt8
    • 50% share cost $40M9
      • Total transaction to establish LSB estimated at $65M10
    • Entity is named Liveringa Station Beef (LSB)8
      • Gina Rinehart Company – Hancock Prospecting9
      • Milne Agrigroup parent company – Dowford Investments9
    • Reasons for purchase cited – Confidence in Australian food exports to Asia8
    • Graham Laitt (Milne Agrigroup) is quoted as saying “LSB is moving away from live exports towards boxed beef”10
    • Liveringa Station8  and Nerrima Station purchased in transaction8
      • 2 properties cover 470,000 hectares and span the Fitzroy River.10

Sources

  1. Parliament Hansard. P. Omodei 17.08.05
  2. Parliament Hansard. K.Chance/M. Montgomery  13.10.98
  3. ‘Abattoir closure leaves 40 people jobless’ ABC News. 23.02.09
  4. WA Meat Industry Authority – as at November 2002.
  5. ‘From Famine to feast in WA slaughterings’ The Land 09.03.07
  6. ‘Australia – Another meat plant closes’ Farming UK. 14.02.09
  7. ‘New Lease of life for Waroona abattoir’ Farm Weekly. 18.06.08.
  8. ‘Rhinehart buys into beef business’ Nth QLD Register. 02.07.2014
  9. ‘Gina Rinehart buys Kimberley cattle stations’ Beef Central 03.07.2014
  10. http:/’Rinehart’s Hancocl Prospecting buys in to cattle stations’ AFR 03.07.2014

Mandurah

Australian Abattoirs, Mandurah, Peel Region, Western Australia 22/06/2013 Leave a comment

Other Names

  • Nambeelup.

Current Operation

  • Closed 2004

Location              

  • Nambeelup – 90km S of Perth

Australia. Mandurah

Map.MandurahSource – Hema maps. Australia truckies atlas

Owner

  • Nebru Exports –
  • Nottle Family    

Operation

  • Chilling equipment was of a very high standard1

 

History

2004  

  • Closed – Sold by receivers – purchased by EG Greens & Sons $5M was immediately gutted.1

2006  

  • District structure plan has abattoir ceasing operation 2006. (pg 14)2

Sources

  1. Parliament Hansard. P. Omodei 17.08.05
  2. http://www.planning.wa.gov.au/dop_pub_pdf/Nambeelup_DSP_Complete_-_August_2012.pdf

Karnet

Australian Abattoirs, Karnet, Peel Region, Western Australia 22/06/2013 Leave a comment

Current Operation

  • Operating as a special purpose abattoir

Location              

  • 30 km E of Mandurah

Australia. Karnet

Map. KarnetSource – Hema Maps. Australia Truckies Atlas

Owner

  • Karnet Prison farm – is a minimum security prison2

Operation

  • Cattle & sheep processed in abattoir1
  • Training site for prisoners to gain experience and knowledge in agricultural production for employment prospects.2
  • Karnet works in conjunction with Pardelup prison farm (Mt Barker), have herd of cattle and sheep, produce is sold on the open market and steers brought to process in the abattoir with cull animals off the farms in the abattoir and boning plant.3
  • Farms produce milk, eggs, vegetables and fruit for other prisons in WA, estimated to save $2M a year in the produce being able to be supplied.3
  • Equipment, sheds and hydroponic systems built from equipment seized in drug raids.3

 

History

1963

  • Prison farm established2

 

Sources

  1. WAMIA Meat processors 2013
  2. http://www.correctiveservices.wa.gov.au/prisons/prison-locations/karnet.aspx
  3. ‘Inside job’ Landline. 19.02.12. http://www.abc.net.au/landline/content/2012/s3434298.htm