A$150,000 State Government grant to DairySafe will fund the development of new online training modules to help create safer workplaces and upskill South Australians entering the dairy processing industry.

The sector expects to recruit approximately 2610 people nationally over the next 12 months and 13,050 over the next five years, with most jobs located in rural and regional Australia.

South Australia’s dairy industry has an internationally recognised safety record, with quality assurance programs overseen by Dairy Safe South Australia at both farm and processing plant levels.

The online training modules will form a series of webinar courses focused on process control, good manufacturing practice and hygiene assurance.

Dairy is now Australia’s third-largest agricultural industry, with South Australia producing nearly 6% of Australia’s total production and generating revenue of $690m in 2021-22.

In 2021-22, South Australian dairy farmers produced 490 million litres of milk for a total production value of $263m.

Dairy product exports total 25,000 tonnes each year, with the top markets for milk and milk products in 2021-22 including Indonesia (36%), China (16%), Thailand (11%), Philippines (10%) and New Zealand (6%).

Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development Clare Scriven said the new online training, which is expected to be available from 30 June 2024, will ensure the industry has up-to-date safety and training standards as regional South Australia reaps the benefits of jobs growth.

“The development of DairySafe’s online training will fill a gap in the courses available to people wanting to enter the dairy processing industry,” she said.

“The sector expects to recruit over 13,000 people over the next five years, with most jobs located in the regions.

“This funding investment helps create greater opportunities for one or our state’s largest sectors and ensures dairy’s food safety standards remains best practice.”