• Lovedale's head brewer Michael Capaldo with trophies from the Royal Sydney Beer and Cider Show.
    Lovedale's head brewer Michael Capaldo with trophies from the Royal Sydney Beer and Cider Show.
Close×

Sydney Brewery will double the fermentation capacity of its Lovedale brewery and build a packaging line that will include a 2500 bottle-per-hour filler, 1800 can-per-hour canning line, pasteuriser for cider, high-end laboratory, and a new cogeneration plant to power the brewery and distillery.

This will make Lovedale the first craft brewery in the country to invest in this type of green energy.

The investment will see the Hunter Valley facility become the major production plant for Sydney Brewery, which moved its large-scale operations to Lovedale two years ago.

Chief brewer Michael Capaldo said that while still very much a ‘craft brewery’, the new capacity would help meet the increased demand for Sydney Brewery’s range of beers and ciders.

“The whole process from grain to brain is very meticulous,” he said.

“You can't compromise on quality with today's consumer. They're very educated, knowledgeable, and they know what they want to drink. So we don't release a batch if it's not in spec."

Sydney Brewery was recently honoured with ‘champion’ beer and cider trophies at the 2015 Sydney Royal Beer & Cider Show.

Food & Drink Business

Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) is consulting on whether packaged food manufacturers should be required by law to display a Health Star Rating, after voluntary uptake targets were not met.

The federal government has committed an additional $387.4 million to CSIRO over four years, but the agency has confirmed its restructure – including a reduction of 300 to 350 full-time equivalent roles and closure of its food science division – will proceed regardless.

The World Drinks Awards has revealed its Gin medallists and country winners for 2026 – with Australia standing tall. Broken Hill Distillery, Callington Mill Distillery, and Never Never Distilling all had standout achievements.