- Round three of WA Government's Value Add Investment Grant Program now open
- $6 million in funding available to food and beverage businesses across the State
The Western Australian Government today announced $6 million in statewide funding to encourage local processing and manufacturing across the State's agrifood and beverage businesses.
The third round of Value Add Investment Grants is now open, with two funding streams aiming to build capability within the agribusiness, food and beverage industries.
The feasibility stream offers co-funding grants between $15,000 and $100,000 to help plan and de-risk future capital investment projects.
Matched grants of $500,000 to $1 million are available under the program's capital investment funding stream to assist recipients to expand, diversify or relocate value adding and processing operations to WA.
Since 2018, the program has awarded $23.8 million to support direct capital investment by local businesses, unlocking an estimated $152 million of private sector co-investment and an estimated 1,200 new jobs across WA.
Previous grant projects have included:
- South West meat processors V&V Walsh's state-of-the-art cold store facility;
- Bullsbrook-based Newco Mills' new stockfeed grain mill servicing livestock industries; and
- Sweeter Banana's food processing centre in Carnarvon for bananas, mangoes and other horticultural products.
For more information, visit the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development websitehttps://www.agric.wa.gov.au/VAIG
Comments attributed to Agriculture and Food Minister Jackie Jarvis:
"The Cook Government is working hard to diversify the State's economy andthe Value Add Investment Grants program is driving growth and innovation in WA's food and beverage sector.
"We've already seen previous rounds of funding support meat processor V&V Walsh with a state-of-the-art cold store facility in our South West and Sweeter Banana with a food processing centre in Carnarvon.
"Now we are encouraging more WA businesses including start-ups and Aboriginal-owned enterprises to apply for the latest round.
"Our Government is keen to see more locally made and processed products because it means less food miles and more local jobs."
