Gundagai Meat Processors CEO Will Barton

GUNDAGAI Meat Processors chief executive officer Will Barton has won the Outstanding Business Leader award at the 2018 Murray-Riverina Regional Business Awards.

Mr Barton won the award for his role in spearheading the business to a world-class level and the positive impact this has had on the local community, particularly in the area of employment.

GMP’s $30 million state-of-the-art expansion was also recognised in the Excellence in Innovation category as a finalist.

Mr Barton received the leader award at a gala event in Wagga Wagga last week and will now progress to the NSW State Final, held on Friday 23 November at Luna Park, Sydney.

The GMP CEO said it was an honour for the company’s team to be recognised.

“Our team have been working hard to make GMP a world-leading business in our industry.

“Through the adoption of new technology and automation including the complete automation of our lamb carcase chiller and sortation system, we have been able to grow our workforce and increase our production capacity by 70 percent and gain organic certification and accreditation to export to the USA,” he said.

“All of which means significant benefits for our employees, producers, clients and community.

“For me personally, it’s a privilege to have the opportunity to lead such a great team and business at such an exciting period in our 44-year history,” Mr Barton said.

The Murray-Riverina Business Awards celebrate business excellence across a number of diverse areas in the region including manufacturing, education and health care services.

Gundagai Meat Processors is owned by the Barton Group. The Barton family have been associated with Gundagai’s meat industry for almost 100 years, spanning three generations. The business remains family owned and operated, with Will Barton now managing the day-to-day operations. Operating exclusively on a fee for service basis, GMP processes from a state-of-the-art Tier 2 Export Certified processing facility in Gundagai.