NORTH Queensland coastal cattle property Exmoor Station will be developed as a major aquaculture operation by its new owner Tassal Group.
The Australian Stock Exchange listed company (ASX: TGR) is recognised as Australia's largest producer of Tasmanian grown Atlantic salmon and a major seafood processor and exporter.
Tassal recently bought the 7012 hectare (17,327 acre) property located at Bloomsbury, north of Mackay, for $28 million from the estate of Bruno Giaiotti.
Tassal processes and sells prawns through its company De Costi Seafoods.
State Development and Manufacturing Minister Cameron Dick said the Tassal development was in one of six aquaculture development areas.
The bulk of the Exmoor will continue to be run as a cattle operation under a lease arrangement.
Tassal announced in January it was rehabilitating and developing the Proserpine Prawn Farm, which is acquired in 2018. Improvements included: redeveloping about 200ha of land-based ponds, which ultimately will increase volume by about 2000-3000 tonnes; a redeveloped processing facility; and redeveloped hatchery, with scope for a domestic breeding program.
Tassal also has prawn farms at Mission Beach in Far North Queensland and at Yaamba, NSW. The three farms were bought from the Fortune Group in a $31.9m deal in September.
An estimated 70 per cent of seafood consumed in Australia is imported.