$2.5M snackfood plant in Timaru

Press, 16 November 1981, Page 18

$2.5M snackfood plant in Timaru

Romantic hearts, rings, stars, wheels, and twists are just a few of more than 20 snackfood shapes which will pour out of a new $2.5 million plant opened at Timaru last week.

The plant is the biggest of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, and will enable New Zealand to move new products into sophisticated international markets for pasta and’other cereal-based foods.

Among its innovations are a “completely new breadcrumb” which can now be made in any size or flavour — without using bread. The crumb will be the first _ locally made product of its ' kind and will replace imported crumb products. One of the factory’s first overseas consignments will probably be to the Middle

East — a new ethnic product called couscous. This semol-ina-flake “porridge” can be eaten alone, in savoury meat stews, or with fruit and nuts for dessert.

“Couscous may be too exotic for the New Zealand market, but .we can also offer local consumers a much wider and more exciting range of snackfoods,” said the chairman of Timaru Milling, Mr Peter Allport. Snackfood developments to expand the local market include new flavours as well as new shapes. Mr Allport said demand was also growing in underdeveloped countries for vita-min-enriched snackfoods. The Timaru Milling Company is a subsidiary of N.Z. Flourmills, Ltd, the milling division of- the Goodman Group.