Page 5 - Food&Drink Magazine Jan-Feb 2019

NEWS
Wine makers ink renewables contracts
WINE makers Pernod Ricard and Australian Vintage and have both made major commitments to renewable energy.
Pernod Ricard Winemakers, which owns a number of brands including Jacob’s Creek, has announced it will be sourcing 100 per cent of its energy from renewable sources from all of its Australian sites by mid-year thanks to a new 10-year virtual generation agreement (VGA) with wholesale electricity retailer Flow Power.
Australian Vintage, owner of brands such as McGuigan Wines, Tempus Two and Passion Pop, will also be sourcing energy from both solar and wind farms through a power purchase agreement (PPA) with corporate retailer Flow Power. The deal will take the company’s facility in Buronga Hill, NSW to 90 per cent renewable, with 30 per cent coming from
1.65MW of ground and roof-mounted solar installed by Todae Solar.
Pernod Ricard Winemakers has also celebrated the official “switch-on” of 1MW of solar-generated electricity at its Barossa Valley Winery, marking the first completed stage of a massive 2.8MW solar installation project.
When completed in mid-2019, this will be the largest combined winery solar installation in Australia, the wine company says, and will supply 20 per cent of its annual electricity usage.
The remaining 80 per cent of its annual electricity needs will be met by solar and wind for the next 10 years through its Flow Power VGA.
The company said its own solar project combined with the VGA will enable it to source 100 per cent renewable electricity well ahead of its original plans. ✷
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State of the Industry revealed
EXPORTERS ROCKET UP THE RANKINGS
Strong export sales are behind the success of some of Australia's fastest moving food and beverage companies this year, according to our Australia's Top 100 Food & Drink Companies 2018 report.
QUEENSLAND’S NEW GF BAKEHOUSE Family-owned Gluten Free Bakehouse has opened a new factory at Kunda Park on the Sunshine Coast to help
keep up with demand for gluten-free fare.
ALDI RECALLS POPULAR MAYO
ALDI recalled its Colway Real Mayonnaise due to faulty packaging and the potential for glass breakage and injury or contamination. The product was made in Germany.
MERGER TO DRIVE READY MEAL ROLLOUT Salad bar chain SumoSalad has announced plans to merge with restaurant and ready meal brand THR1VE to help it expand into new channels including supermarkets.
CORONA TAKES ON PLASTIC POLLUTION Mexican beer brand Corona is trialling new plastic-free six-pack rings in Mexico at the beginning of this year, with plans to then test them in the UK market.
THE $131 billion food and beverage, grocery and fresh produce sector now accounts for nearly 40 per cent of Australian manufacturing jobs,
but has battled challenging conditions through 2016-17, according to The Australian Food and Grocery Council’s (AFGC) State of the Industry 2018 report.
The annual industry snapshot, compiled by EY,
revealed that a number of challenges have created
relentless pressure through the supply chain.
AFGC CEO Tanya Barden says this has now reached
the stage where this pressure
is placing strain on the sector, and she is calling for targeted investment allowances.
“A 10.3 per cent decrease in net capital expenditure off the back of a decade of declining investment, reflects a genuine concern that increases in input costs coupled with depressed pricing makes the case for investment difficult at this critical time,” says Barden.
She stressed, however, the need for investment in site modernisation. ✷
www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au | January-February 2019 | Food&Drink business | 5