Cressy abattoir is better known as TQM. Located in Tasmania and processing sheep and lambs for export markets.
Other Names
- Tasmanian Quality Meats
Current Operation
- Currently operating at time of writing December 2013.
Location
- Cressy is located on the Mainland of Tasmania approximately 50km south of Launceston
Hema Maps – Australia Truckies atlas.
Owner
- Tasmanian Quality Meats (TQM)1
- Co-Owners – Brian Oliver & John Talbot4
- Managing director – Brian Oliver1
Operation
- Processes and send lambs to export3
Source ABC Rural ‘ Stopping Sheep disease..” 16.09.2013
- Skins salted and sold3
Source – Agricultural studies school visit abattoir. – Salted skins being packed.
- non-meat body parts processed into fertiliser3
- Employs 70 people3
Other abattoirs in Australia
Go to this link to view Location of Australian Abattoirs
History of Cressy #19.
1997
- Established business2
- Plant previously used to process small numbers of wallbies and venison4
- Cressy processed 100-120 smallstock a day6
- 12 staff6
- battled with this processing level for 3 years as stabilised business6
- Selling into the domestic market
2001
- Blue Ribbon Smithton abattoir (Tas) – Tasmania’s largest processor went into receivership6
- Coles asked Cressy to process and distribute beef, sheep and pork to its Tasmanian stores6
- Cressy leased and operated Smithton site processing 500 units a day and 52 staff.6
- as production increased so did costs6
- Cressy developed new beef processing floor, beef chiller and larger smallstock chiller6
2003
- Built meat processing floor providing a service kill for veal and lamb for butchers and wholesalers throughout Tasmania and mainland Australia
2004
- Expansion of facilities at Cressy should be finished by April – allow for processor to explore new export market opportunities.1
2010
- Tasmania required a small stock export plant
- Cressy start work on a new state-of-the-art processing floor
2011
- January. Processing 4,000 units per week6
- August. Cressy abattoir achieved export certification5
- September.Processing floor developed in 2010 commissioned – achieving Tier 1 Export registration
2012
- January. Processing 5,500 units per week6
- Since export accreditation sent 86,000 lambs to Middle east and killed 75,000 for domestic market.5
- Once Halal slaughter introduced stopped production of pigs immediately on religious grounds6
- May. Ceased beef kill operations – only killing 50 head a week and return was unviable6
- Further expansion of slaughter line occured6
- October. Cressy announce significant expansion at their meatworks2
- grant $250,000- Tasmanian Government Innovation and Investment Fund2
- total cost is $538,000 TQM invest $288,0002
- One of five companies to receive grant5
- Convert old beef floor into 500 unit lamb/mutton chiller2
- Need for greater chiller space due to market availabilty fluctuations of supply5
- Lift processing to 10,000 lambs a week5
- Focus is to build export markets for local product2
- Since establishment has undergone 4 major upgrades2
- currently employing 17 FTE, 41 casuals.2
- 12-15 new full time and part time jobs will be created with expansion2
- allow TQM to ship direct to markets on Australian mainland and key overseas export markets2
- switch to exports incurred additional costs due to shipping.4
- Shipping to Melbourne can be as costly as sending produce on from Melbourne to Southeast Asia4
- grant $250,000- Tasmanian Government Innovation and Investment Fund2
- Productivity increase – by 25% to 2000 units a day2
- decreasing fixed costs and improving efficencies2
2013
- January. Processing 9,000 units per week6
- processing all of Tasmania’s bobby calf production6
- 1,000 lambs processed and shipped to Brisbane under Royal Reserve brand6
- Tasmania had good competition and processing for beef but large portion of sheep and lamb was being shipped live to Victoria for processing6
- Tier 1 Export Licenced audited by AQIS6
- restricted export opportunities to 22 countires6
- 2nd Tier requires outsourcing to Victorian abattoir to meet freezing, packing and cutting requirements of markets6
- double handling and extra costs
- When sent then has Victorian stamp when its actually Tasmanian product6
- Plans to build blast freezer with extra boning and cutting room renovations to aim for Tier 2 application.6
- Pre stuns sheep prior to slaughter4
- Cressy is Halal accredited – Customers Dubai, Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Vietnam4
- also sending to Qatar5
- Currently processing 2,000 animals a day4
- Local market is shrinking due to undercutting by giant supermarkets4
- Cressy weren’t competitive, their domestic market small and export opportunities limited4
- Changed focus direction, invested and innovated around the problems of high Australian dollar – now supplying halal meats in a growing number of international markets.4
- Cressy is tapping into growing markets and air-freighting product4
- preferable to exporting of live animals according to owners of abattoir4
- Lamb killed at TQM Monday can be at Customer Middle East Wednesday.4
- Tasmania is only state prohibiting use of HGP’s4
- Employing 80 people4
- Cressy recently named regional exporter of the year.4
- September. Have an open door policy to suppliers to observe, learn and improve7
- Quality assurance manager – Chris Cocker – selected as a finalist for biosecurity Farmer of the year.7
- Animal health workshops to assist farmers to identify, educate, knowledge and combat diseases.7
- More than 120 producers have taken opportunity to see their own stock processed7
- liver fluke, cheesy gland, sheep measles and Ovine Johnes disease7
- Sarcocysts comes from cats and is a problem due to feral cats7
- Producers wear cost of disease due to downgrades in carcase7
- Cressy supply a feedback sheet to producers – giving percentagaes of diseases or what processor has found.7
- Carcase costs $8-$10 per animal to process if it is condemned to meat meal, producer receives nothing.7
- November. Tasmania Quality Meats – Announced as winner of Regional Exporter of the year category at 51st Australian Export Awards.8
- “The company’s change in direction to becoming a direct exporter is a major milestone, and is to be congratulated” Award Judges.8
- No direct export sales in 2011 financial year to $12M in export sales 20138
- Last few years from 20 staff have now employed 75.8
- Produce certified Hala and HGP free chilled and frozen whole -carcase veal as well as 6-way boxed veal.8
- Products including frozen veal, mutton, lamb and offal processed in accordance with Halal requirements and sol as Halel in markets such as Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.8
Source:‘National Exporter award to Tasmania Quality Meats’ Beef Central 27.11.2013
Tasmania Quality meats Logo.
2017
- This year has been very difficult due to10;
- high stock prices10
- Shortage of workers10
- Had gained some workers from other abattoirs that have closed Flinders Is and Longford #195. Tas.10
- Currently processing 1,700 livestock a day10
- Using 65-70 workers10.
- Flinders Island facility moved some of its service kill process to Cressy10
- Current Manager – Ralph Jak10
- Cressy is currently operating service kill and own branded products10
- Diversification allows better adaptability to current market conditions10
- Trade lamb products10
- Mutton in 3 or 6 way cuts to the Middle East10
- Diversification allows better adaptability to current market conditions10
Sources
- ‘Cressy abattoir upgrade’ The Examiner 08.03.2004
- ‘Further investment in Tasmanian Livestock Industry’ 11.10.2012
- Agricultural studies visit Tasmanian Quality Meats
- Reuters Market Analyst – Clyde Russell 18.12.2013
- ‘Middle east demand spurs Tasmanian lamb abattoir upgrade’ ABC rural. 15.10.2012
- ‘What’s in store: Big steps in small stock’ Stock and Land. 22.04.2013
- ‘Stopping the spread of sheep diseases a winner’ ABC rural. 16.09.2013
- ‘National Exporter award to Tasmania Quality Meats’ Beef Central 27.11.2013
- ‘Tas Quality meats back on track after a tough year’ ABC rural. 18/12/2017. Audio
