After months of speculation, Gina Rinehart, Australia’s richest woman, has reached an agreement with the Queensland government for a $500 million infant milk production and export deal. Under the agreement, Hope Dairies, owned by Rinehart’s company Hancock Prospecting, will purchase 5,000 hectares of dairy land in Queensland and will process infant formula and UHT at a Queensland processing plant. Rinehart’s company will also produce 150 million liters of milk per year for export beginning in 2016. The Chinese partner in the deal is Chinese farming machinery manufacturer, China National Machinery Corp. which has been seeking to invest in Australia. This is not Gina Rinehart’s first investment in agribusiness. Earlier in 2014 Rinehart invested $40 million to acquire a 50% stake in two cattle stations in Western Australia on the heels of mining competitor Andrew Forrest buying Western Australia’s largest beef producer, Harvey Beef.
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