February 12, 2015

Locals oppose Ningbo Dairy Group's expansion plan in Australia 

Situated in Kernot, 100km south-east of Melbourne, Yo You Dairy, a subsidiary of Ningbo Group, has expressed its plan to double its herd size and export 10,000 litres of fresh milk to China daily.

The company plans to do so by building a dairy milk processing plant in Gippsland and acquiring the Bass Coast Shire dairy farm. According to Jon McNought, Manager of GHD, the company managing the permit application on behalf of the Chinese group, Gippsland is chosen mainly because of its proximity to the airport, so as to expedite the export of fresh milk to China.

However, the locals are strongly against this expansion as they are concerned that Ningbo Group will be hiring labour from China, making it difficult for the locals to seek employment.

"Agriculture is a key component of our economy down here but we want to make sure we get the right developments into the municipality and to make sure that such a proposal like this ticks all the boxes in terms of sustainability," said Paul Buckley, chief executive of Bass Coast Shire.