Page 7 - Food&Drink magazine July 2021

Woolworths new $400m DC
Harvest B receives $1m AMGC grant
PLANT-BASED ingredients system start-up Harvest B is one of six manufacturers to receive funding in the first round of the federal government’s Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre (AMGC) Commercialisation Fund.
AMGC allocated $3.73 million, which has been matched by the manufacturers with
around $4.7 million.
AMGC managing director Dr Jens Goennemann said it was critical for the centre to build
on the industry’s momentum in light of COVID-19.
“These first six
co-funded projects combine industry money with federal funding to generate higher- paying, more resilient jobs onshore, this means supplying our high-quality products and services locally and abroad,” Goennemann said.
Harvest B is a smart ingredient system for making plant-based meat. It is made in Australia with locally sourced wheat.
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NEWS
WOOLWORTHS Group has announced a new $400 million distribution centre at Wetherill Park in Sydney’s west.
The Wetherill Park Fresh Distribution Centre (DC) will replace the existing fragmented network and supply more than 280 stores in New South Wales. Construction of the multi-storey facility will start in FY22 with completion expected in FY24.
The DC would provide ongoing employment to around 700 people and 500 during construction, the company said.
Woolworths Group CEO Brad Banducci said it would “substantially complete” the company’s New South Wales supply chain network, which currently has three DCs providing the group’s fresh and temperature-controlled
network – Michinbury Fresh DC and two third party facilities.
In June 2020, Woolworths announced the closure of its Yennora, Mulgrave and ambient operations at the Michinbury DC, with those operations moving to its $700-780 million automated Regional DC and semi-automated National DC at Moorebank Logistics Park in Sydney. The semi-automated National DC covers 40,700 square metres and is expected to receive and dispatch roughly 9000 products from more than 900 suppliers to more than
1020 stores.
Meanwhile, a development
application has been lodged for a 35,000 square metre Kemps Creek liquor DC to service Endeavour Group NSW stores (Dan Murphy’s and BWS) under
a partnership agreement from 2022. This would create
180 ongoing jobs and 100 during construction.
The existing liquor DC at Erskine Park will be converted into an ambient grocery DC when Kemps Creek opens.
COVID-19 CLOSES METRO STORES Woolworths said Metro Food stores in key transit traffic locations including the CBD and public transit sites have been severely impacted by COVID-19. It expects to record a non-cash impairment charge of approximately $50 million in relation to 13 stores. Three have already closed.
Banducci said, “The changing customer work and shopping patterns we have seen over the last fifteen months have negatively impacted some of our stores. Most stores are in locations that have not been impacted by a reduction in customer foot traffic and continue to perform well, including new-look neighbourhood stores recently opened in suburban Sydney.”
The company said it still plans to open around 30 new Metro stores over the next three years, with a bias towards neighbourhoodfoodstores. ✷
www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au | July 2021 | Food&Drink business | 7