IN another reflection of the growing importance of the United States market for Australian beef and sheepmeat exports, South Australia’s Thomas Foods International has invested in a Florida processing facility formerly owned and operated by US meat giant, Tyson Foods.

TFI already has a large footprint in the US market, launching a US sales and distribution division back in 2009. The company now processes and distributes more than 45,000 tonnes of Australian beef, lamb and goatmeat each year through its primary US operations based at the Lakeside Processing Facility in Swedesboro, New Jersey.

The Florida facility will evidently be run as a southern extension. TFI bought the former Tyson Foods Inc plant in Northwest Jacksonville last week.

The site is designed to produce portion-controlled, pre-packaged, retail-ready meat products for US supermarkets, designed to pack directly from a master box into the meat case or retail shelf.

Jacksonville City Council records suggest TFI is prepared to spend US$28 million on the vacant facility, bought through TFI USA Properties LLC.

The warehouse was built in 1974 on a 2.6ha site. Tyson closed the facility in 2024, moving to a larger location. Records show TFI plans to build-out the current 17,000sq m facility, creating up to 100 new jobs within the first three years of operations.

According to a report held by the Jacksonville City Council, the facility will produce about 450 tonnes of finished product weekly. International port access at nearby Jacksonville was apparently a consideration.

TFI has gradually expanded its overseas sales and distribution operations, with divisions in the US, China, Japan, the UK and Europe, as well as Australian production facilities.

TFI entered the US market in 2009, when the Thomas Family joined forces with US business Food Comm to create TFI USA, one of the first businesses to supply high-quality chilled grassfed beef to a national retailer in the US.

The business continues to grow and expand, now distributing more than 45,000t of quality meat products year round, the company website says.

“From our state-of-the-art facility in New Jersey, built in 2010 and located minutes from the Port of Philadelphia, we deliver high-quality pasture-raised lamb, a range of solutions from grassfed to grainfed beef, Angus, Wagyu, Organic beef and free-range goat, to businesses across the United States,” the website says.

Australian beef exports to the US have boomed this year, in the face of of US domestic beef herd now at 70-year lows. The US remained easily our largest market for the month of August and year-to-date, with August volume hitting 40,754 tonnes. The consistently high 2025 export results continue to reflect strong US demand.

Lamb exports to the US last month reached 6271t, with the US taking 28pc of all Australian lamb exports for the month, up from 23pc in August last year. Monthly exports of Australian goatmeat rose 20pc year-on-year to 4975t in August – the strongest August result on record. Shipments to the US rose 22pc year-on-year to 2608t.

• We’ve asked TFI for a comment about the new facility, but have not yet heard back. We’ll add it here if something arrives.