Noumi’s Shepparton site produces the most out of the company’s two Australian manufacturing locations.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Regional Victoria is delivering productivity levels close to Melbourne’s, with Greater Shepparton’s manufacturing sector among the industries contributing to the region’s economic output.
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The Regional Australia Institute’s August report found regional Australia was making a significant contribution to the nation’s productivity, generating 60 per cent of Australia’s goods exports despite being home to just a third of the population.
The report said some regional economies were delivering productivity levels up to five times the national average.
RAI director of research and policy Simon Pryor said Victoria’s regional productivity was only just behind Melbourne.
“Regional Victoria plays an important role because it is the centre for a lot of manufacturing industries like food manufacturing,” he said.
Committee for Greater Shepparton chief executive Linda Nieuwenhuizen said significant investment in technology had changed what was happening inside local manufacturing businesses.
“That means the outside of the shed may not have changed. But what is happening inside our manufacturing sites is really quite extraordinary,” she said.
“Once you step inside, you really begin to understand just how significant we are as a region.”
Long-life milk manufacturing business Noumi sends products from Shepparton to national and international markets.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
Ms Nieuwenhuizen said the region’s contribution was often underestimated.
“I think there’s been a misconception that we grow the primary product and send it somewhere else,” she said.
“In this part of the world, we not only grow it, we add value to it.
“The world will always need to eat, and we make some of the best food in the world.”
The report has called for greater recognition of regional productivity, with official national statistics not currently measuring productivity at a regional level.
Mr Pryor said better regional data could help governments identify the infrastructure and investment needed to support individual economies.
“What we’re calling for in this report is for that consideration to be included in the national discussion around how to lift productivity,” he said.
“If we can lift productivity, we can play an even greater role and help turn around the national productivity decline, which has been going for three decades now.”
Ms Nieuwenhuizen said continued investment would be needed to ensure regional infrastructure and other assets kept pace with expected industry growth.
“We really need to ensure the investments happening today keep pace with the likely investment we will see from industry,” she said.
The Noumi Shepparton warehouse exports its products to 24 different countries.
Photo by
Rechelle Zammit
