GrainCorp Silos at Kaniva -Victoria

The design features the Australian Hobby bird. 

Smaller than other falcons, it is one of six Australian members of the family ‘Falconidae’. 

The Australian Hobby is relatively slender and long-winged. It is often seen hunting in vegetated urban areas, as well as in almost any lightly timbered country. To the left of the bird is the plains sun orchid (Thelymitra megacalyptra) with the salmon/pink sun orchid (Thelymitra rubra) on the right. Flowering occurs between September and November, and they generally only open on warm, humid days.

The Artist - David Lee Pereira

David Lee Pereira is a Melbourne-based studio and mural artist. He was assisted by fellow artist and friend Jason Parker. Local photographer Cindy McDonald provided the reference images David chose for the silo. 

“We painted for over 200 hours straight, through the elements and the cockatoo attacks and rain, painting with 400 litres of paint to create this tribute to the Little Desert and endemic flora and fauna of the West Wimmera,” said David.

The Kaniva GrainCorp Silo was completed in October 2020. David has also painted the GrainCorp Silos in Merriwa NSW.

Kaniva Grain Silos

Receiving and out-loading rates are a nominal 110 tonnes per hour. Construction on the Kaniva silo began in January 1939 and it was completed in November that same year. It had a capacity of taking 2,950 tonnes and received 4,979 tonnes of wheat in the 1939-40 harvest. The silo was in use until 2014. 

Before the advent of silos, bagged wheat was loaded directly into rail wagons. When wagons were unable to keep up with grain production, bags were stacked and stored in the railway yards, but there were large losses of grain due to wet weather, rodents and insect infestation. The losses prompted a silo building program along existing railway lines. In 1934 legislation authorised the establishment of the Victorian Grain Elevators Board, now known as GrainCorp. The Kaniva Silo is known as a Geelong Concrete Silo. Overall 91 silos were built in Victoria between 1935 and 1950 using this design. These units are open-topped bins with corrugated galvanised iron roofs. 

Further information can be obtain from www.kaniva.org