Lockyer Valley grower's new harvesting tech to create 24 jobs with RED Grant
Rohan Drummond
29 August 2023
A Lockyer Valley vegetable operation will produce quality lettuce more efficiently using a bespoke harvesting and cooling machine and create up to 24 full-time jobs thanks to a Rural Economic Development (RED) Grant.
Barden Farms managing director Andrew Drummond said the new equipment would enable the enterprise to harvest, bag and cool lettuce in the morning for export that night.
“We envisioned the new equipment to be a one-stop harvesting aid, enabling us to grow, cool and pack quality lettuce more efficiently to each customer’s specifications," Andrew said.
The new harvesting and cooling system will be used at Barden Farms' Gatton site during winter, Nobby site during summer, and Inglewood site during the remainder of the year, creating up to 24 full-time jobs.
“The project will create up to 24 full-time jobs including farm labourers and harvest supervisors, and it is also expected to create a range of indirect jobs in agronomy, freight, and horticultural suppliers," Andrew said.
“The new labourers won’t need to be experienced farm workers, because the modern harvesting machine makes it simple to operate, grade and pack produce.”
The machine is expected to be up-and-running by next year.
Barden Farms Pty Ltd is one of 24 businesses approved for the fifth round of the competitive RED grants program with a total funding of $3.9 million. Overall, the fifth round of the RED Grants program is expected to create up to 215 direct, long-term jobs.
Grants are available for up to $200,000 with a 50 per cent cash contribution requirement from applicants to fund projects which generate economic and employment opportunities related to primary production value chains across rural and remote Queensland.
Over five years, the Palaszczuk Government’s RED Grants program has provided a total of $13.3 million in funding to support 59 successful regional agribusiness projects, worth more than $52.4 million and estimated to create over 2,500 new direct and indirect jobs.
A sixth round of RED Grants, supporting Indigenous-owned agribusinesses and projects aimed at low-emissions agriculture, has been allocated for the 2023-24 financial year, with applications to open later this year.
For more information about the RED Grant scheme, visit the RED Grants scheme page.
The Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority (QRIDA) administers the RED Grant scheme on behalf of the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.
