40 new Hydro jobs

Deputy Premier and Minister for State Development Peter Ryan today announced horticultural company KAITEKI Fresh Australia would establish a multi-million dollar hydroponics facility, the first of its kind outside of Asia.

Mr Ryan made the announcement at the Department of Environment and Primary Industries (DEPI) Knoxfield facility in Melbourne’s east, where the company has been undertaking trials growing its product under Australian conditions.

Mr Ryan said KAITEKI Fresh Australia’s investment represented a vote of confidence in Victoria’s economic credentials and bolstered the State’s reputation as a global leader in food production.

“To have a major agricultural company such as this willing to make a significant investment here in Victoria shows the potential for the agricultural sector to be a mainstay of the Victorian economy over the next century and beyond,” Mr Ryan said.

The new greenhouse facility will produce leafy green vegetables such as spinach and rocket without the use of pesticides and using a fraction of the water and fertiliser used in traditional horticultural methods.

“This ground breaking new facility will be the first of its type outside of Asia, enabling 20 harvests of green leafy vegetables per year, in comparison with four using traditional soil methods,” Mr Ryan said.

KAITEKI Fresh Australia was established in Australia by Mitsubishi Plastic Inc (MPI) in collaboration with The KAITEKI Institute, a global research institute focused on meeting 21st century challenges in energy, the environment and healthcare.

MPI and the Kaiteki Institute have collaborated for a number of years on the development of next generation hydroponic technologies that enable the rapid cultivation of green leafy vegetables.

Mr Ryan said MPI and the KAITEKI Institute, in collaboration with DEPI, had managed to produce leafy vegetables of the same quality of the product grown in Japan.