Cobram Estate opens new olive processing mill in Boort, creates 30 jobs

The $35m expansion of the company's existing operations at the north Victorian site was described as the "cherry on the cake" by joint chief executive officer Leandro Ravetti.

The new mill, 270 kilometres north west of Melbourne, will hit its processing capacity of 100,000 tonnes of olives each year in the next four to five years.

The Victorian Government's Regional Jobs and Infrastructure Fund contributed $600,000 to the development and the rest came mainly from the company's cash flows.

Mr Ravetti said Cobram Estate's processing mill at Boort was now the largest in the southern hemisphere and the expansion followed years of investment and planning at the site.

"The existing mill has served us well over the past 20 years," he said.

"With the additional crop coming from the maturing profile of the trees at our grove, coupled with long-term third party agreements, it was time for us to completely rebuild the mill."

The new mill will see the daily processing capacity at Boort double from 1000t to 2000t over the next five years, as the trees planted at the site mature.

Last year, Cobram Estate planted 407 hectares of olive trees at Boort, bringing its total plantation there to 1.24 million olive trees across 3508ha.

The plantation featured Arbequina, Coratina, Frantoio, Leccino, Koroneiki, Hojiblanca and Picual olive varieties.

Mr Ravetti said the olive trees were a "very environmentally friendly" crop.

He said there was no clearing of native bush involved in the plantation and the trees had been sown on land which was previously used for cropping.

"We kept significant areas of native vegetation as well," he said.

"It makes the overall farm quite a large corridor for native wildlife.

"And it's a significant carbon sink."

The 30 new full-time jobs at Boort will be filled over the next four to five years across food production, processing and logistics.

They were added to the 35 existing permanent roles at the site and will bring Cobram Estate's total employment to almost 120 workers at its Lara, Boundary Bend and Boort sites.

Mr Ravetti said he was confident about the demand for extra virgin olive oil in Australia.

"We have been investing in the future supply of high-quality Australian extra virgin olive oil through the expansion and redevelopment of our Victorian olive groves, here at Boort and our original home at Boundary Bend, over the past 25 years," he said.

"With the creation of this new facility at Boort, we now have one of the best and most efficient mills in the world."

He said olives were a "bit picky" when it came to climate and Australia was placed perfectly to capitalise on increasing global demand.

"There's very strong demand and quite limited growth in supply," he said, adding that this combination created a bright future for the company.

Cobram Estate exported their olive oil to 13 countries and 20 per cent of its produce was usually exported in any given year, depending on markets.

Minister for Regional Development Gayle Tierney said she was "proud" of the company's investment.

"Our support for Cobram Estate's new processing plant in Boort has put northern Victoria firmly on the map as a key player in the global olive oil industry, which means more jobs for locals," she said.

Member for Northern Victoria Jaclyn Symes said the project represented a "significant boost to local jobs".