Australia-based Lion Ltd. opened The Heritage, a specialty cheese manufacturing hub in Burnie, Tasmania, that is said to be the largest specialty cheese facility in the Southern hemisphere.

The Heritage experienced a $150 million expansion and upgrade to be transformed into what is said to be one of the world’s most technologically advanced specialty cheese facilities, with improved site capacity, capability, environmental impact and safety.

“Specialty cheese will be a key value driver for our business, as a growing category that is strategically important to our customers,” says Stuart Irvine, chief executive officer. “Lion is proud to be the clear category leader, with a powerful portfolio of brands that Australians know and love, from South Cape to Tasmanian Heritage, Mersey Valley and King Island.

“We have significant headroom to increase specialty cheese consumption and maximize the impact of our portfolio, and our strategy is focused on unlocking this opportunity. Lion’s investment in The Heritage is integral to this, as we work to optimize the performance of our supply chain and achieve competitive efficiency and scale.

“The expanded site will also help us grow capacity and capability to innovate in specialty cheese, ultimately driving higher margin sales that deliver sustainable returns to Lion and through the whole supply chain.”