• SA mining in driver’s seat for state economy
• Detpak designs new catering platter for Subway
• First 24/7 pharmacies to open in Adelaide
• Growth and spending up on the Parade
• Lot 14 company wins at Australian Export Awards
• New hi-tech seaweed facility
• Trailblazing interior designer inducted into DIA Hall of Fame

SA mining in driver’s seat for state economy

New Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows the South Australian mining sector was the main contributor to state economic growth in the 2022-23 financial year.

The sector contributed more than $6 billion over the 12 months, with gross value generated by mining activities up 13.9 per cent to $6.17 billion.

ABS data also showed SA gross state product increased by 3.8 per cent in FY23.

“Mining contributed $963 million – around 35 per cent of South Australia’s total capital expenditure – in the September 2023 quarter,” Energy and Mining Minister Tom Koutsantonis said.

“In current price terms, this is the highest South Australian quarterly mining capital expenditure recorded by the ABS since 1989.

“It’s important we continue to support the sector, and we are showing we can do that in a variety of ways, including providing contemporary precompetitive data that can drive new exploration programs and mineral discoveries.”

– David Simmons

Detpak designs new catering platter for Subway

Detpak, a subsidiary of South Australian packaging business Detmold Group, has designed a new fibre-based catering platter for sandwich giant Subway in hopes of removing 26 garbage trucks’ worth of plastic every year.

The 100 per cent recyclable platters will be manufactured by Detpak, and have been designed for easy assembly and efficient in-restaurant storage and transportation.

Detpak group general manager, product & brand, Keith Bishop said the initiative was an example of how collaboration could deliver sustainable packaging outcomes.

“Assisting brands with their sustainable packaging and reducing single-use plastic is key to Detpa’s commitment to the environment and social responsibility,” Bishop said.

Subway Australia & New Zealand managing director Shane Bracken said replacing Subway’s catering platter with the eco alternative worked toward the company’s aim of designing 100 per cent of packaging to be recyclable, compostable or biodegradable.

“Packaging, in particular, plays a huge role in the choices we make towards our sustainability commitments,” Bracken said.

“It’s critical that we’re considering the circular economy and how our packaging can be better designed for sustainability through its entire lifecycle, versus focusing only on the end product and how it is disposed of.”

– David Simmons

First 24/7 pharmacies to open in Adelaide

National Pharmacies will open its first 24/7 pharmacy in Norwood to serve the central Adelaide area as part of the state government’s $2.5 million initiative to open three such pharmacies in Adelaide.

The two other 24/7 pharmacies will be the Chemist Warehouse at Saints Shopping Centre in Salisbury Plains and the Chemist Warehouse in Cloverly Park.

Each of the three pharmacies will have a pharmacist on site for 24 hours a day.

The government said that 24/7 pharmacies will take pressure off hospital emergency departments by providing access to medicines, pharmacy services and advice around the clock

“Lack of access to pharmacies after hours is a concern that is raised by many families, and often leaves people with nowhere else to turn but emergency departments,” said Health Minister Chris Picton.

“This is not only inconvenient for them, but places extra strain on our busy emergency departments.”

– Charlie Gilchrist

The Parade, Norwood. Photo: Tony Lewis/InDaily

Growth and spending up on the Parade

The Norwood Parade has seen a growth in consumer spending and a sharp fall in commercial vacancies, according to data from the City of Norwood, Payneham and St Peters.

The data indicated that spending rose to $1.68 billion from November 2022 to October 2023, up from $1.5 billion in the November 2021 to October 2022 period. This represents a 12 percent increase.

“This is pretty amazing given the economic headwinds of inflation and interest rates over the past 18 months,” said Norwood, Payneham and St Peters Mayor Robert Bria.

According to the report, the AFL Gather Round held in April this year, injected $2.5 million into the dining and entertainment sector in Norwood.

The Council also found that the Parade has the lowest vacancy rate of all precincts tracked, dropping from 3.3 per cent to a record 2 per cent.

-Charlie Gilchrist

Lot 14 company wins at Australian Export Awards

MyVenue has won the Small Business Australian Exporter of the Year at the Australian Export Awards in Canberra, awarded for “outstanding international success by any business with a total annual sales not exceeding $10 million.”

MyVenue is a point of sale for stadiums, arenas and hospitality businesses and says it has seen a 433% increase in exports in the past 12 months.

–Charlie Gilchrist

New hi-tech sustainable seaweed facility

A new aquaculture facility focusing on the growth of sustainable seaweed has opened in Glenelg.

The project is a joint venture of the Australian Sustainable Seaweed Alliance and the South Australian Research and the Development Institute as part of the National Hatchery Network to be rolled out in coastal locations around Australia.

The new facility will include a scientific lab space, high-tech research equipment and specialist outdoor seaweed growing areas.

The ocean site is located near the naturally occurring Asparagopsis, a native seaweed that has been prioritised for rapidly scaled cultivation due to its livestock methane-reduction properties.

–Charlie Gilchrist

Maryanne Milazzo was inducted into the DIA Hall of Fame

Trailblazing interior designer inducted into DIA Hall of Fame

Adelaide interior designer Maryanne Milazzo has been inducted into the Design Institute of Australia Hall of Fame.

The DIA Hall of Fame website describes the award as “the ultimate recognition for achievement and contribution to the Australian design industry” and an “enduring record of the pioneers and ambassadors and their significant contribution to Australia’s economic development and cultural identity.”

DIA Hall of Fame committee Chair James Harper said “Maryanne Milazzo is an interior design pioneer and amongst the first female directors of architecture and interior design practices in Australia”.

“Maryanne has always seen herself as a creative changemaker in her career as an interior designer, but somehow never expected to experience the special honour as an inductee of the prestigious national Design Institute of Australia Hall of Fame,” he said.

Milazzo said that when she started few women were working in the interior design industry.

“[T]here were few [women] mentors before me. I was not comfortable just following the way men presented themselves, so I chose to be authentically me,” she said.

“This proved to work in my favour and helped me to become one of the first female interior design directors of an architectural practice.”

–Charlie Gilchrist