The plan for a micro abattoir on a farm in Eganstown has moved one step closer to becoming a reality - and many more communities across Australia are keenly hoping to establish their own.
The Hepburn Shire Council council has given the go-ahead for the project after approving a planning permit for Jonai Farms in July.
Despite receiving objections from 30 members of the public, the farm was granted approval with 45 conditions.
Tammi Jonas, who runs Jonai Farms & Meatsmiths, said she was relieved at the decision after years of planning for her small-scale agricultural venture.
"When it got to the point of being a political decision after the planners made the recommendation to approve, you have to hope that the politics were on your side, and so we were really pleased with the council's decision," she said.
"I've already had several farming groups from around Australia ask if they can set up a zoom with me to meet with their communities to talk about the process of doing something just like this."
According to Ms. Jonas, many more farmers are interested in a system that is less industrialised and allows for more independent decision-making, such as choosing the method of stunning animals and the transportation process.
"Obviously the other small scale farmers in our area are very keen because they want access to a local abbatoir, and they like the idea that there'll be an abbatoir with shared values," she said.
"So that's where the majority of the support is, but not only that, there's other people who are just who care about food systems who also think it's a benefit to have animals not transported long distances, not have them go through industrialised abbatoirs and to have a local source for all of their their meat."
She said she admired the Hepburn Shire Council's approval decision, despite the fact that some council members considered it a risk and "quite different" for the area.
"What's interesting, of course, is it's only the last 50 years that this has become something 'quite different'," she said.
"Small abbatoirs used to be quite the norm everywhere, and this just shows that we can go back to the ways of doing things where communities have local infrastructure for this kind of farming and small scale agriculture generally."
Concerns from submissions, and one councillor at the meeting, included the environmental impact of the abbatoir and concerns over property values.
However while she said those concerns were "genuine", they were also "not well-informed".
"Risks for the road, noise or odour... are normal community concerns with the development nearby them," she said.
"It's just because they didn't understand the small scale of the operation, and we were able to deal with those really easily as organisations like the Environment Protection Authority and Goulburn Murray Water had no concerns."
Ms Jonas said she is waiting on any further objections that will head to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, but is also finalising designs and lining up contractors.
"We hope in optimistic terms we'll be breaking ground by Christmas," she said.
