We've launched a virtual tour of Macknade Mill to mark its 150th birthday. 

Macknade Mill in the Herbert region notched up 150 years of operation in August, making it the oldest continuously operating sugar mill in Australia.

Manager Operations Trevor Forde said the virtual tour was developed to commemorate the major milestone and create a public record of the site in its 150th year.

“This virtual tour enables anyone, anywhere, to visit Australia’s oldest sugar factory and get a close-up view of every stage of the sugar manufacturing process.

“It’s built as a 360 spin, so it starts as a distant aerial view of the site, then opens up into a flat site map. You can either put the tour on auto play, complete with an audio narration, or navigate through the factory manually,” Mr Forde said.

The virtual tour is available on our website, or by searching ‘Wilmar Sugar virtual tour’.

It’s Wilmar’s second virtual mill tour. The first was of Pioneer Mill in the Burdekin, which was launched in March this year.

Mr Forde said the main celebrations for Macknade Mill’s 150th birthday would be held in May next year.

He said the organising committee was planning a golf day, community night and historical display.

It was long thought that Macknade commenced crushing in 1874 – the date featured on a plaque unveiled at the mill in 1964 to mark the Herbert River District centenary.

However, historical records that were previously not readily available show crushing commenced for the first time in 1873.

Macknade Mill has had several different owners since it was established on the banks of the Herbert River, 12km north-east of Ingham.

There have also been several major upgrades. The sugar factory now processes an average of 1.5 million tonnes of sugarcane a year, to manufacture about 191,000 tonnes of raw sugar.