Around a quarter of Victoria's rural councils have expressed their interest in attracting food and beverage manufacturers to expand their businesses, or invest outside metropolitan Melbourne for the first time.
Rural Councils Victoria chair Mary-Ann Brown says economic development officers from 11 of the 38 member councils said they were interested in further opportunities.
RCV has set up a new digital information platform to help food and beverage manufacturers to find ways of expanding, or investing.
The website provides information about industrial assets across rural Victoria, including location, the type of land available, sales prices and information on economic trends for manufacturing in rural Victoria.
"Rural Victoria offers food and beverage manufacturers and their employees benefits that just can't be found in metropolitan areas or in regional cities," Cr Brown said.
"There is a wide range of industrial landholdings, land and buildings that are much more affordable, no encroaching residential development to limit expansion plans, no traffic congestion and large buffers from other activities."
"With Melburnians continuing to leave the city for a better way of life, rural Victoria also offers workers and their families a wide variety of lifestyle choices, amenities and access to the range of services they need."
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Cr Brown said Australian Bureau of Statistics data showed Victoria's food and beverage manufacturing sectors had a $4.8 billion growth in revenue with $1.9 billion, or 38pc, of this revenue growth based in rural Victoria."
"I think its probably one of the projects which has a long tail, these are not decisions businesses can reach really quickly," she said.
"But it is definitely highlighting there are opportunities there in rural communities."
On the other hand, manufacturers had raised the issue of availability of land and the fact they couldn't expand any more in Melbourne.
"The other issue was access to supplies, and reduced cost in getting the raw product to the factory," she said.
"If you are a primary-production based economy, there are lots of benefits from doing the value adding in your area."
She said businesses like Mars, in Ballarat, were a prime example of what could be done.
But member councils had limited resources.
"That's the conversation we now need to have - how to best support them."
Colac Otway shire Community general manager Ian Seuren said dairy processing was one of a number of key industries the local authority nominated as having expansion opportunities.
"Colac Otway Shire is ideally placed for dairy manufacturers because we're close to dairy suppliers, have affordable land, access to both Melbourne and Adelaide markets, as well as already established distribution companies in the area," Mr Seuren said.
"We have had a number of micro-manufacturers within the dairy industry move to the shire recently, including one that successfully sells Indian paneer cheeses direct to restaurants."
Council encouraged any businesses wishing to consider the shire as their base to talk to the Economic Development team to learn more about the benefits and opportunities Colac Otway provided.
Andrew Miller
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
