CENTRAL Queensland is pushing for a small-scale multi-species domestic processing facility (SMPF) to develop locally branded meat products.

The Queensland Country Meat Processors Association recently highlighted the recent growth in the state of smaller processing facilities largely being driven by demand for service kill space for more paddock to palate branded products. Several new regional abattoirs have been built, with others looking at expansion or new greenfield sites.

The MEAT Capricorn Project is a collaborative partnership between CQUniversity, Livingstone Shire Council and Rockhampton Regional Council, and was established following strong demand from small-scale producers wanting to process their meat for direct-to-consumer sale.

While two large-scale beef export processing facilities operate at nearby Rockhampton, smaller producers want the ability to process smaller numbers of sheep, goats, pigs and cattle, which currently have to travel to Monto or the Mackay Region for processing.

CQUniversity Professor of Regional Economic Development, John Rolfe said the project was still at the conceptual stage where the market opportunities and possible options for development have been identified.

“There is a significant market gap in our region to process and sell local product, particularly for goat, sheep, and pig farmers,” Mr Rolfe said.

“At this stage we are focused on two main strategies. The first is to build a stand-alone facility that would handle multiple species, while the second would be to just develop a boning facility.

“The boning facility could be set up as a training facility and a place to test new technologies, to help address major skills gaps in the meat processing sector and capitalise on some very experienced meat workers in the regional area.”

The QCMPA has been involved in discussions about this facility and supported the idea of a training facility if the project was to go ahead.

No site has been identified for a facility, but the study suggests it would work best if it were close to Rockhampton, in either the Rockhampton or Livingstone Local Government Areas, to service an area approximately up to 300 kilometres radius from the facility.

A locally based SMPF would reduce slaughter travel times by as much as 3.5 hours which would improve animal welfare, increase production, provide employment and training pathways, improve product traceability and allow local producers and businesses to develop location-based branding or a meat co-operative.

“Our local farmers are hungry for more and want to sell their produce, but without a small-scale multi-species processing facility that can be both expensive and impractical,” Tony Williams, Rockhampton Region Mayor said.

“We are the Beef Capital of Australia, and this facility would only enhance that reputation and support those larger-scale facilities.

“Imagine sitting at a restaurant along the (Fitzroy) river in Rockhampton and being able to say with 100 percent certainty that your steak came from our own backyard – that’s a significant tourism and business opportunity we want to see realised.”

The plans suggest a facility that could process up to 50 cattle equivalents per week, with the boning facility requiring much smaller numbers to be viable compared to a small-scale abattoir.

The three partner agencies are now looking to attract an investor to further progress the project.

The MEAT Capricorn scoping study received funding from the Australian Government through the Black Summer Bushfire Recovery Fund, provided through Livingstone Shire Council.