d'VineRipe®

Market demand results in $65 million truss tomato glasshouse

South Australia's leading truss tomato producer, d'VineRipe, has responded to a significant increase in market demand for quality Australian tomatoes with a $30 million Stage 2 expansion of its world-class facility at Two Wells, near Adelaide.

The joint venture company will deliver Australia's largest tomato glasshouse to use leading-edge pad and fan climate control technology when Stage 2 of the total $65 million development opens on February 22.

It will result in a glasshouse operation spanning some 17 hectares with the capacity to produce up to 10,000 tonnes of tomatoes a year. Stage 1, an eight hectare development which entered full production in late 2007 was, at the time, Australia's largest glasshouse to be built over one stage.

d'VineRipe general manager, Leon Maree, said Stage 2 had proceeded due to the operational performance of Stage 1 and increasing demand.

The feasibility of including an on-site nursery to propagate the seedlings, currently grown at specialist nurseries in Queensland and Western Australia, would be investigated in the future, he said.

"Since Stage 1 opened, we have become even more adept at dealing with the specific climatic conditions of Two Wells and learned to control the climate within the glasshouse as well as adjust irrigation, fertilisation and other production techniques accordingly," Mr Maree said.

"Stage 2 incorporates several minimal design improvements acquired from managing Stage 1. The most significant is the use of specialised glass on the roof which filters UV rays and allows useful light to reach the plants and boost growth."

Other new features include the implementation of wind tunnels or pad corridors between glasshouses to prevent hot-wind damage. The existing packing facility is also undergoing a significant upgrade to cope with the additional volume to be generated. 

Stage 2 will double the facility's size, infrastructure and production capacity. It features some of the world's most advanced glasshouse construction technologies and operating systems.

More than 100 new jobs will be created within the glasshouse and packing facility, taking the total seasonal workforce to between 180 and 200. This includes the appointment of two additional specialist growers who have undergone extended training in Holland, considered to be the world's leader in high-tech glasshouse tomato production techniques.

d'VineRipe is a joint venture alliance between fresh food marketing company Perfection Fresh Australia and diverse investment company The Victor Smorgon Group.

Perfection Fresh chief executive officer, Michael Simonetta, said demand for Australian tomatoes had mostly outstripped supply since Stage 1 opened.

"We've always been very bullish about fruit and vegetable consumption and, in particular, the growth in the tomato market. Consumers have become savvy about the health benefits of eating well and are showing increasing interest in innovative home-cooking," Mr Simonetta said.

"Stage 2 has proceeded on the strength of demand from our retail customers around Australia. Specialty Romatherapy® baby roma tomatoes and Il Bello Rosso™ baby roma tomatoes produced in the glasshouse have performed extremely well and d'VineRipe has seen an overall rise in demand for truss tomatoes.

"While there will always be peaks and troughs in supply, d'VineRipe will be better placed to satisfy demand when Stage 2 production is in full swing. Good planning programs which clearly communicate peaks in supply will ensure demand is met. The key objective is to service customers with an increased volume of prime quality fruit."

The glasshouse currently produces Romatherapy® baby roma tomatoes, Il Bello Rosso™ baby roma tomatoes, Saladette® truss tomatoes and d'VineRipe™ truss tomatoes hydroponically. Other new varieties are under discussion between d'VineRipe and its retail customers.

"Successful trials on one new tomato - with a distinctive shape and flavour profile - have been carried out and d'VineRipe will proceed to commercialisation in 2011 on the strength of engagement from customers," Mr Simonetta said.

d'VineRipe may also investigate growing bell capsicums in the second stage of planting in 2012, he said.

Dutch glasshouse construction company van der Hoeven greenhousebuilders designed and built both stages.

Mr Simonetta estimated the facility had injected several million dollars into the local economy by providing work for sub-contractors.

South Australia's Minister for Industry and Trade, Tom Koutsantonis, congratulated d'VineRipe on reaching the milestone.

"The South Australian Government, through the Department of Trade and Economic Development, case managed this project and we are pleased to see it come to fruition," Mr Koutsantonis said.

"This is the sort of project that aligns perfectly with the State Government's industry development policy, as it satisfies the triple bottom line - with a commercial, environmental and social dividend."

Stage 2 will be launched on February 22.

Key glasshouse facts:

• The facility comprises 90,000 panes of strengthened glass on the roof and 30,000 panes on the walls. Each measures 1.8 by 1.2m - the largest sized-panels so far used in glasshouse construction in Australia.
• Some 200 kilometres of drip house piping and 340 kilometres of heating pipe have been used throughout to irrigate and heat the glasshouse.
• The bespoke facility is a wholly sustainable development which seeks to minimise its environmental footprint. Key features include a co-generation plant which runs on natural gas to create electricity, heat and carbon dioxide (CO2).
• Most water used is sourced from Adelaide's waste water which is diverted to the Bolivar Water Reuse Project, near Virginia, and treated before being piped to d'VineRipe's water treatment plant. There, a reverse osmosis plant filters and sends quality water to the crop and the remainder to an evaporative pond.
• A 100 per cent closed watering system collects rainwater from the roof, nets and treats the water and reuses it on the crop.
• The evaporative cooling system maintains an optimum temperature between 24-28°C inside the glasshouse irrespective of outside temperatures.
• Innovative technology used in the packing facility was built by world leading product and handling systems supplier, Viscon of Holland.
• An automated bulk packing line can produce 25, five kg trays a minute while a pre-packing line can process 84 packs of 500g a minute.
• Up to 10,000 tonnes of Romatherapy® baby roma tomatoes, Il Bello Rosso™ baby roma tomatoes, Saladette® truss tomatoes  and d'VineRipe™ truss tomatoes will be produced a year.
• In Stage 2, eight individual glasshouse compartments are being progressively completed.
• The seasonal workforce will range from 180-200 including 40 employees in the packing facility and four specialist growers.