Lachley Meats / Swift (closed)

Forbes Export Abattoir, 1 Lachley Street (Newell Highway), Forbes NSW 2871 Aus-Meat establishment #656

• Built in the 1950s on the Newell Highway, 8km north of Forbes town centre, on a 170ha site adjoining the railway line
• Operated as an export beef and sheep facility throughout its history, specialising in grainfed beef for Japanese and Korean markets
• Operated by Swift Australia (Southern) Pty Ltd at some point prior to 1988; Swift held EPA licence EPL 1848 (issued 11/09/2000, surrendered 11/09/2000)
• 1988: Acquired by Lachley Meats Pty Ltd, backed by Japanese interests including trading company Mitsubishi and the Hannan Corporation, the second-largest importer of beef into Japan
• By 1997: Aus-meat registered as an export beef and sheep facility under Lachley Meats (Forbes) P/L
• The plant had closed and reopened three times between 1988 and 2003
• August 2003: Permanently closed. Japanese ownership withdrew financial support citing high operating costs of an aged plant, labour shortages, and capital upgrade requirements. 170 permanent and approximately 70 part-time workers lost their jobs; the facility had employed up to 450 people at peak
• December 2003: Site sold to Tasman Group Services. Never reopened under Tasman
• Circa 2011: Changed hands again to an Australian owner; equipment salvaged from the closed Killarney abattoir (QLD) purchased and kept in storage on site
• 2013: Abattoir council confirmed plans to reopen; did not proceed
• 2016: Site attracted strong overseas interest, primarily Chinese and Korean; auctioned October 2016
• Current status: Closed and non-operational. EPA licence surrendered. The road fronting the site was renamed Lachley Street after the Japanese-era operator