GWF’s Ballarat mill is in its final stages of construction. Photo: Vic Govt

THE FIRST greenfield flour mill to be built by George Weston Foods’ Mauri division is on track to open this year in Ballarat.

It will eventually replace, and augment, capacity from Mauri’s only other Victorian mill, located in North Melbourne.

Under parent Associated British Foods, Mauri shares GWF’s Australian stable with Tip Top Bakery, artisan bakers including Brasserie Bread, Don KRC smallgoods, Yumi’s labels, and Jasol cleaning and industrial products.

GWF is a major agrifood-sector employer in Victoria across sites including Bendigo, Castlemaine, Dandenong, and Port Melbourne, as well as the existing mill at North Melbourne.

Developments at the Ballarat mill site were outlined during a recent visit from members of the Victorian Government.

Welcomed by region

According to a Ballarat Local Informant article dated April 21, Mauri’s North Melbourne mill uses 80,000t of wheat annually, and the Ballarat mill will more than double its milling capacity in Vic.

According to an April 21 Facebook post by Victorian Member for Ripon Martha Haylett, the new mill will process 180,000 tonnes of wheat per annum.

“The first bags of flour roll off the line in August — bringing new manufacturing jobs and millions of dollars into our region,” Ms Haylett said in the post.

Mauri’s first new flour mill in Australia is on track to open later this year. Photo: Michaela Settle MP

Construction of the mill was announced by GWF  in May 2022.

“George Weston Foods’ expansion is a win for regional Victoria and is a testament to the strength of our food manufacturing sector, which is why we’re proud to support it,” Vic Minister for Industry and Advanced Manufacturing Colin Brooks said in a statement released April 21.

Through acquisitions last century of N.B. Love and W. Thomas and Co, GWF acquired mills still in operation include those at Enfield in Sydney, Yeerongpilly in Brisbane, Northam in Western Australia, Port Adelaide in South Australia, and North Melbourne.

GWF operates solely in Australia and New Zealand, and is one of the region’s three major flour millers, the others being Allied Pinnacle, owned by Japan’s Nisshin Seifun Group, and the Honan family’s Manildra Group.

“With almost $500 million invested in our operations over the last decade alone, George Weston Foods is committed to being a long-term employer in Victoria, in partnership with the Victorian Government,” GWF chief executive officer Paul Foster said in the Vic Govt statement.

CHS Broadbent’s site in the Ballarat West Employment Zone is adjacent to a rail line which is expected to link into the Ballarat Intermodal Freight Hub. Photo: BWEZ

Waiting for rail

BWEZ is an initiative of the City of Ballarat and Regional Development Victoria, and is slated to include the Ballarat Intermodal Freight Hub.

This points to the mill eventually being able to receive wheat by rail as well as road.

BWEZ has for many years been home to a CHS Broadbent bulk-handling and container-packing facility which, like the adjacent GWF site, has potential for rail connectivity.

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