The meat industry's ongoing export certification troubles with China have benefited the South Otago town of Balclutha - with Silver Fern Farms investing in a new casings plant there.
Silver Fern Farms chief executive Keith Cooper says the company's going back to the future as it opens the new sausage casings facility.
The meat industry, Silver Fern included, has closed a number of casings plants over the past 10 to 15 years and sent its partly processed lamb intestines, that the industry calls green runners, to China for processing into sausage casings.
But Mr Cooper says the certification troubles have changed all that.
"There are some certification issues that have arisen over the last six months which has forced us to look at other opportunities as the economics of exporting green runners to other countries are less than optimal."
Mr Cooper says Silver Fern Farms has invested $1.3 million in the plant and he's confident it will have a long term future.
He says it will allow the company to spread risk by making casings to a semi-finished state and then export them to around six markets, thereby reducing the company's reliance on one processor.
Mr Cooper says the casings plant should be completed around Christmas - and processing should start soon after.
