EXCITEMENT is growing among dairy farmers from the tiny Berry Co-operative about a $2 million milk processing factory under construction.
The 100-year-old farmer co-op has been producing milk for its local brand for the past decade.
The bulk of the co-op's seven million litres of milk is sold to Murray Goulburn (Devondale), but about 1.3 million litres goes to Picton's Country Valley dairy plant to be bottled under the South Coast Dairy brand.
The new processing plant will produce 18,000 litres in one shift, with capacity to run three shifts a day, initially creating about six new jobs.
In early November, Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce attended an official sod turning to start construction at the new milk processing plant, which is also earmarked to produce cheese and yoghurt lines.
It will supply dairy products from Wollongong to the Victorian border and into the Southern Highlands.
Berry's seven suppliers began their South Coast Dairy label soon after milk giant Lion closed the long-established Dairy Farmers factory at nearby Bomaderry, resulting in more than 60 job losses.
Berry co-op chairman Paul Timbs (pictured), who runs about 250 Holsteins and Ayrshire milkers on "Tara Dairies", is one of the seven producers supplying milk to the co-op.
He said the new processing plant would cut transport costs and allow the co-operative to produce more for the retail market.
This would also give the farmer-owned company more scope to grow its range of products.
"By June the new processing plant will be up and running, we will process our own milk and it will go straight to the customer," Mr Timbs said.
"We're excited it's happening; it's being supported locally and people are very excited about what we are doing."
