Mitani Group will further expand its food manufacturing facility with an additional $1.22 million investment, as the company grows into new areas of production and packaging.
It follows completion of a first-stage $2.25 million expansion and brings the amount invested by the company in its Salisbury facility to $3.47 million over two years.

Mitani recently launched its state-of-the-art liquid emulsions processing plant, the first of its kind in Australia, to increase capacity and streamline the production of mayonnaises, salad dressings, sauces and marinades.

It has been launched alongside a new $250,000 liquid sachet packaging line.
The additional investment will create a new Frozen Extruded Products line (for flavoured stuffings and butters), automated bottling line and a further expansion of the liquid sachet packaging line. This second stage is due for completion in January 2020.
While best-known for its Chicken Salt, the Mitani Group operations have been built around being the secret ingredient for some of Australia’s biggest food and beverage companies including Inghams, Coopers, Coles, Woolworths, Hungry Jacks and Sunfresh Salads.

Mitani develops and produces a range of food products for these companies including bulk mayonnaises, salad dressings and sauces, poultry and meat stuffings, flavored butters and seasonings.
A key part of the Mitani Group’s success has been the establishment of the Mitani Development Centre, where new products are developed, tested and refined, before being scaled up for mass production. The Centre employs a dedicated team of development chefs and food scientists.

Mitani Group Managing Director Tas Mitani said the investments significantly increase our capacity to allow us to compete with the large multinationals.
“We’re a specialist producer with a focus on research and development and personalised customer service, but now we can develop new products and meet demand for larger production volumes”, said Tas Mitani.

“Convenience remains a key driver of food production in Australia and around the world with a rapidly growing ready-to-eat market. That’s why we’ve invested further in product packaging to not only be able to manufacture in large quantities but deliver in a portion-controlled, convenient form.”

“Ready-to-eat consumers are also taking a greater interest in health and nutrition which has led us to invest more into product development and explore new production methods.”

“The investments have already been key to us securing multiple, new national supply contracts over the past 12 months.”

It’s not just on the factory floor where the Mitani Group is investing. The company has been working with local and international software companies to develop and adopt the Mitani digital workplace to support their continuous improvement culture and lean manufacturing transformation.

Mitani has also invested in expanding and refurbishing office space, created a new food laboratory and built staff amenities.
The next priority is staff development. Mitani Group aims to convert a larger percentage of its 70 strong workforce into full-time employees, with support from a South Australian Government Future Jobs Fund grant.

The Mitani workforce development plan will provide longer-term job security for employees, help retain and attract highly-skilled people and achieve greater operational continuity.
2019 is a milestone year for the Mitani Group.

In November, the company will celebrate its 40th year of operations in commercial food production, having started life in food retailing with a small delicatessen in Adelaide’s northern suburbs.
It was the now famous Mitani Chicken Salt that took the business from retail to commercial production, but today the company’s operations are much broader.
This year, the Mitani Group is on track to produce enough chicken salt for 45 million serves of chips, dressings and mayonnaise for 40 million salads and enough stuffing for 40 million chickens.

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