South Australian juice-maker Nippy’s has unveiled plans to spend A$10 million on increasing its packaging capacity and expanding its milk processing operations at Waikerie and Moorouk in the Riverland region. The Riverland adjoins the Murray River near South Australia’s border with Victoria. Nippy’s, which is owned by the Knispel Group, has been awarded a State Government grant of A$2.61 million to help with this expansion. Managing Director of the Knispel Group, Jeff Knispel, said the... ...Read more »

The Australian Government will provide pig farmers with the opportunity to earn carbon credits for burning their pig manure, if proposed new legislation is approved under the government’s new Carbon Farming Initiative. The Federal Government has established the Carbon Farming Initiative to develop carbon offsetting methodologies so Australia’s farmers can receive credits for reducing their carbon output. Under the Federal Government’s ‘Methodology for the Destruction of Methane Generated... ...Read more »

Exporters who were approved for Export Market Development Grants (EMDG) in excess of $50,000 will now receive 73.94 cents in the dollar for that part of their entitlement above $50,000. These businesses, which represent 30 per cent of all EMDG applicants, will receive their payments next week. Previous forecasts had indicated that due to an unexpectedly high number of applications for the 2008-09 grant year, companies could only expect to be paid between 50 to 70 cents in the dollar. The remaining... ...Read more »

Victoria’s Regional and Rural Development Minister, Jacinta Allan, announced a $67,200 grant last week to help the Victorian Wine Industry Association to conduct research that will help the industry plan for future growth.”The Brumby Government is taking action to help Victoria’s food and wine industry continue to grow,” advised Ms Allan. “Victoria’s wine industry is a key contributor to the state’s economy with an annual turnover of about $1.3 billion and... ...Read more »