Processor needed to avoid closure

Two years ago, amid a milk price crisis for the dairy industry, Gippsland Jersey emerged as a boutique company with the aim to give farmers a fair price. But now, the company is facing its own crisis.

Within the next four weeks, the Jindivick dairy brand needs to find somewhere to take 20,000 litres of milk each week or it faces closure.

Gippsland Jersey directors Steve Ronalds and Sallie Jones were notified last week their processor would not be accepting their milk from next month.

After being bought out, Keysborough based Nulac Foods is now focussing on its goat milk products and has given four weeks notice to Gippsland Jersey.

While building their own Gippsland based processing plant is on their agenda, it cannot be done in four weeks.

Unless they can find a new processor, Steve and Sallie are facing the prospect they may have to close.

“We have gone into panic mode to find a solution…but we probably work better under pressure,” Sallie said.

Within days, Steve and Sallie said they had received hundreds of calls of support and helpful leads.

They had calls from processing plants in Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide.

“We have got no time to waste but hopefully something will come out of the calls,” Sallie said.

Growing from 3000 litres a week to 20,000 litres within two years has been a massive level of growth that Steve and Sallie did not expect.

But even now, Steve said they were still considered “small fry” when it came to processing companies.

He said the smaller boutique processing companies were already busy and the larger companies were not interested.

“It has highlighted there is not a facility in Gippsland,” Sallie said.

With products now in 200 outlets, Steve and Sallie are desperate to keep Gippsland Jersey on the shelves and continue to be the dairy company that offers a fair price.

Establishing their own Gippsland processing plant in the next 12 to 18 months is in their planning with due diligence currently under way. “Our 12 to 18 month plan is to build our own facility. We have been in the process of doing due diligence, but it takes lots of money and lots of legislation.

“Our own processing plant would mean more jobs and more suppliers.

“We want to keep Gippsland Jersey as a local brand. The government, Latrobe Valley Authority, Regional Development Victoria have all reached out to us this week, they don’t want us to close.

“We are just getting momentum, so for it to close would be a kick in the guts. Our big picture is to bring as many farmers on line to give as many farmers as possible a fair price,” Sallie said.

Steve said they have spoken to many processors in the past week and are hopeful they will have options. They also “put in a call” to Drouin based company Pureharvest who Sallie said was one of their options at this stage.