The site has been bought by Epicurean Food Group (EFG), which is set to turn the factory into a mushroom-growing facility that will produce more than 20,000 tonnes of mushrooms annually. The factory will be transformed into a lab to curate mushroom cultures, a facility to grow mushrooms using regenerative practices, and a hi-tech commercial kitchen to process and package the fungus into pre-packaged products like burgers and sausages.
According to EFG's CEO, Kenneth King, the Elizabeth factory will be the only mushroom factory in Australia that manages the entire cycle from curation to production. The company intends to increase its workforce from 31 full-time employees and 60 contractors to 350 staff, with an eventual goal of expanding the facility to 35,000 square meters. This is a sharp contrast to the 5000 workers at its peak and the 2000 employees at the site before it was closed in 2017.
The Holden factory was opened in 1958 and started full vehicle production with the EH in 1965. It became the only home of the Commodore when the Dandenong plant closed in 1989. However, in 2017, Holden shut its doors for good after producing its last red Commodore SS-V Redline sedan. The future of the rest of the site is unclear at this time.
Source: Adelaide Now
