Think Big Think Fresh: A Fresh Food Precinct associated with the Western Sydney Airport

Western Sydney could become the country’s new ‘Fresh Food Precinct’ creating 12,000 jobs for the region when the Western Sydney Airport is up and running.

A new report released today, Think Big Think Fresh: A Fresh Food Precinct for Western Sydney Airport, by NSW Farmers’ Association and leading consulting firm KPMG, has found a ‘Fresh Food Precinct’ associated with Sydney’s new airport would:

• Create a significant amount of jobs and economic development in Western Sydney
• Provide local Western Sydney communities access to a new fresh market precinct
• Provide farmers in New South Wales access to new high value lucrative markets in Asia and the Middle East.

NSW Farmers’ CEO, Matt Brand said a fresh food precinct would be a win-win for the city and the country.

“It isn’t very often one piece of infrastructure can provide economic benefits for people in the city and the bush, but the Western Sydney Airport could do just that. 

“The report puts forward a vision where Western Sydney Airport becomes the Fresh Food Precinct in New South Wales for high value food production, processing, and export.

“This will not only create significant amount of manufacturing jobs for Western Sydney, but high skilled high paid employment associated with cutting edge agricultural and food processing practices.”
NSW Farmers is also calling for the Sydney Markets to consider co-locating to the Airport precinct.

“The markets moving out to the Western Sydney Airport makes sense at every level.  It provides stall holders access to new markets overseas, at a site that will have great transport links to domestic and overseas customers and suppliers, and service the growing Western Sydney community that have been poorly served in terms of access to amenities that people in other parts of Sydney take for granted,” Mr Brand said.

KPMG Partner Robert Poole said the development of the Western Sydney Airport provides an opportunity to develop a high tech food production precinct, with processing and manufacturing, transport and handling operations, and export facilities to exploit the lucrative overseas fresh-food markets via airfreight. 

“The Precinct would provide primary producers with the opportunity to move up the value chain and access new lucrative overseas markets and NSW produce could be on Asian shelves in 36-48 hours, and achieve significant price premiums for our producers,” Mr Poole said.

“A fresh food precinct won’t happen without local, state and federal governments taking action to put in place in the appropriate planning processes and investments now to avoid missing out on this game changer for Western Sydney and the bush,” Mr Brand said.

The Sydney Business Chamber is also behind the proposal.

Western Sydney Director, David Borger says a new fresh food precinct in Western Sydney will not only assist in shifting the jobs deficit in the region but will ensure food manufacturing activities in Western Sydney remain dynamic and progressive. 

“The fresh food precinct will be good news for the two million people who live in Western Sydney, allowing them easy access to fresh, locally produced food.  

It will also bring with it considerable economic benefits and will provide farmers in regional NSW access to high value lucrative markets in Asia and the Middle East, securing Western Sydney’s title as the ‘supermarket’ of Asia,”  Mr Borger said.

Date: 1 November 2017

Media Contacts:

Kathleen Curry | NSW Farmers| 0429 011 690
Sarah Belin | KPMG  | 0408 195 368
Kylie Adoranti | Sydney Business Chamber | 0450 784 616