Balco Australia Celebrates Grand Opening of New Adelaide Head Office
Balco Australia celebrated the grand opening of its new head office in Adelaide this week located at a refurbished heritage site in North Adelaide (80 Brougham Place). The ceremony was attended by Joe Szakacs Minister of Trade & Investment (SA), Wayne Thorley Mayor Murray Bridge Council, Rodney Reid Mayor Wakefield Regional Council and Professor Deli Chen (AO) from Melbourne University.
Balco moved its headquarters from Balaklava following the announcement of a new hay processing site to be built at Monarto on a 157 hectare greenfield site. Today at the ceremony, Balco Australia CEO Rob Lawson said, “having a permanent head office building in Adelaide marks another step in our journey, but we still have very strong ties to our regional areas and to Balaklava where we were founded.
“We believe in employing local people wherever we can and are proud to say we have the majority located in regional Australia, with around 58 employees in regional SA, around 40 in country Victoria and another 30 in WA”.
Balco’s Board Chair and major shareholder Mr Hunter Hu said, “I make a firm commitment to continue to support regional areas within Australia as Balco continues to grow and that Balco will be continuing to be an active player in sustainability to position the business into a place of strength for many years to come.”
Minister of Trade & Investment (SA) Joe Szakacs said, “it is really exciting to see the remarkable progression of Balco. The overall impact lifts the reputation of the state and lifts the reputation of South Australian primary producers.”
The Balco Australia office in Balaklava will remain open with a smaller number of Balco employees, and Balco is continuing investment in the local and regional communities within which it operates.
BACKGROUND
Established in 1990, Balco Australia is a leading exporter of Australian oaten hay with processing facilities at Bowmans in SA, Brookton in WA and Raywood in VIC employing a total workforce of 154.
Since Mr Hu’s investment in 2015, Balco has experienced 85% growth in revenue and tonnes sold. With a mission to build a respected, sustainable and competitive supply chain of oaten hay products to global markets, Balco was recently recognised at the 2024 South Australian Premier’s Business and Export Awards by winning two Awards, including the Regional Exporter Award and the Sustainability and Green Economy Export Award.
MEDIA CONTACT
Lucy Harrland
Marketing Coordinator
Balco Australia
lharrland@balco.com.au
