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24 July 2024
By Bronwyn Hastings
Stakeholders of Australian plant breeding company InterGrain are celebrating the start of construction of a new state-of-the-art plant breeding facility in Horsham.
A leading cereal breeder in Australia, InterGrain offers wheat, barley and oat varieties for growers.
Its successful wheat and barley breeding programs, and a new oat breeding program, are designed to target the major cereal growing regions of Australia.
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The significant investment in Horsham is part of InterGrain’s triple-node commitment to breeding programs across Australia, which also includes a new facility in Perth, Western Australia, and a seed production site at Narrabri, New South Wales.
InterGrain chief executive Tress Walmsley said the project extended the Horsham operations, which started in 2010.
“This facility is a crucial hub for our breeding activities,” she said.
“As our breeding programs continue to grow significantly, this new custom-built facility with increased capacity and efficiency will support our future growth.
“We are so pleased to get construction underway.
“The new build will not only increase operational efficiency but also greatly improve the working environment for our team.”
Secured with a 20-year lease and additional options, the facility is engineered to optimise operational efficiency through expanded storage capacity, enhanced pest control, and the implementation of advanced temperature control and dust extraction systems.
“It’s a super-exciting day for us – it’ll be even more exciting in 12 months’ time when we launch the new building,” Ms Walmsley said.
“We’re also really impressed and pleased that we got Wimmera builders – it’s wonderful.”
Pellicano managing director Renato Pellicano said his company, a property development group based at Mount Waverly, had owned the Stawell Road block for some time.
“We built next door, and have been waiting for the right occupier to come along for this site,” he said.
“Pellicano is proud to partner long-term with an Australian plant breeding pioneer such as InterGrain, providing them with an end-to-end solution that made sense for both of us.
“InterGrain building here means more jobs, and more growth for Horsham.
“It’s a very exciting day to be onsite and underway, after quite a few hiccups.
“We see Horsham as a real growth area over the next 10 to 20 years – we have a larger piece of land available next door for regional occupiers to continue our ongoing investment in the region.”
Work at the new facility at Lot 4, 142-150 Stawell Road, Horsham is expected to be completed by mid-2025.
The entire July 24, 2024 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!
