Welcome to the latest issue of Food & Drink Business, the first quarterly issue for 2026. It has been an interesting start to the year, one that felt noticeably buoyant at the outset but has settled back into a sense of grim determination. And if there is one thing food and beverage manufacturers have, it is determination. But there is an ingenuity and a tenacity that kicks in when the economic environment is less than ideal.
Our Trends feature in this issue talks to the main driver for the sector – consumers – and how manufacturers can tap into the motivations behind their purchasing behaviour and the flavour profiles they can’t get enough of.
For our cover story (page 14), I visited Bulla in Colac, Victoria – the dairy company’s home for more than 100 years. I travelled with Process Partners, which was embedded at the site for the construction of a new ice cream facility. The build is a masterclass in judicious business decisions and the capacity for a supplier-client partnership to deliver a world-class facility with the future at its core. Also – ice cream.
This year’s Hive Awards are well underway, and while the judges take to reviewing the entries, we take a look at what some of our past winners have achieved since their success. That’s from page 18.
Treasury Wine Estates has had a tumultuous FY26 to date, particularly in its US business, but on home soil it is at the forefront of developing NoLo alcohol wines. The wine maker’s $15 million facility in the Barossa, patented process, and a talented passionate team are out to solve one of the trickiest beverages to de-alc. See page 36 for that one.
And finally, Hilton Foods is one of the country’s largest meat processing and packaging companies, running a high-volume, complex operation, including supplying more than 1000 Woolworths stores. Asset finance can be crucial at this scale, with even just a small change at the shelf requiring major change on the factory floor. We talk to the company and its finance partner, DLL Group, about how they work together. Read more on page 38.
It’s a tough time in the market, but the companies we cover and people we profile in this issue show the industry’s core attributes – creativity, innovation, and a commitment to quality products and services.
