Poultry processing Victoria: Lack of abattoirs squeezes small farms

SMALL-SCALE poultry farmers are scrambling to find a processor after one of Victoria’s few abattoirs made the business decision to stop killing small lots.

Down to the wire: Ben Falloon and his daughter, Maya, with meat chickens at their property at Woodend. Picture: Zoe Phillips

SMALL-SCALE poultry farmers are scrambling to find a processor after one of Victoria’s few abattoirs made the business decision to stop killing small lots.

West Melbourne poultry processor Golden Poultry stopped offering contract kill services for small-scale meat chicken farmers at its facility in Albion, near Sunshine, earlier this month.

Managing director Henning Skallebaek said the decision was made based on costs.

The company will still process jobs for a few longstanding clients.

“It is just not economically viable to have 30 people processing a small order,” Mr Skallebaek said.

The company’s business model is based on processing 800-900 birds an hour, which is about 5000-8000 birds a week.

Mr Skalleback said most of the company’s small-scale jobs were 300 birds or less, and slowed the slaughter process to unprofitable levels.

“That is why there are very few small processing plants around,” he said.

“Over the years they have disappeared because it is not viable.

“It’s a shame, but that’s how it is. There are little margins in what we are doing. We have gas, electricity and water bills skyrocketing.”

Poultry farmer Ben Falloon was left searching for an alternate abattoir after the decision.

Mr Falloon raises about 1000 meat chickens, as well as egg-laying hens, pigs and cattle, on his 162ha property at Woodend.

“I don’t hold Golden Poultry responsible for the situation,” Mr Falloon said.

“However it just highlights the broader issue in Victoria, and Australia in general, that the way in for small operators, who could be producing a superior product on farm, is a challenge.

“We were paying $4.50 per bird at Golden for the kill price. When you look at supermarket chicken, which is 2kg and $7.50/kg, you can see our costs pile up.

“PrimeSafe’s view is that there are 20 poultry processing facilities in Victoria, but they are all private except for one.”

Mr Falloon said Star Poultry at Keysborough, near Dandenong, was the one abattoir in the state to offer contract processing.

“That represents an enormous issue for farmers in the north and west,” he said.

Mr Falloon said building an on-farm micro-abattoir that met PrimeSafe regulations and could be easily replicated was a potential solution to the lack of service.

He has launched a Pozible campaign to finance building a prototype on his property.