December 26, 2007

Swift Australia invests US$60 million for processing facilities

JBS-Swift Australia is pouring A$70 million (US$60 million) to improve its beef processing assets next year to advance the company's ability to produce value-added products and increase productivity.

Swift Australia CEO Iain Mars said some A$30.5 million (US$25.6 million) will fund improvements at its flagship Dinmore plant, one of the company's four Queensland processing facilities to undergo significant upgrades.

The investment follows the company's July takeover of Australia Meat Holdings.

Work at Dinmore will include A$12 million to A$15 million (US$10 million to US$13 million) to upgrade a specialised value-added products facility. Plans also call for creating a new products division to research and develop new products and processes, the company said.

Mars said the new emphasis on value adding work will "tie in with JBS's extensive cold storage and fabrication facilities in Russia, Algeria and parts of Central Europe."