We want you - food company urgently needs hundreds of new workers in regional Victoria

George Weston Foods last month announced plans to build a new flour mill in Ballarat at a cost of $133 million.

It is also upgrading its Don KRC business in Castlemaine and needs more staff for its big piggeries in Bears Lagoon, north of Bendigo, and Girgarre in the Goulburn Valley.

The company, which is owned by Associated British Foods, is moving its famous Golden Crumpet manufacturing line from Adelaide to Dandenong as well.

This week it partnered with the Victorian government to spend $3.71 million to fill 200 new jobs.

The government said the food company's decision had secured the company's long-term future and supported more than 1300 Victorian businesses and farmers who supply and work with them.

GWF now needs full-time food production operators, packers, farm assistants and administrators.

The jobs are available at the Castlemaine factory, its head office in Port Melbourne and its farms.

A total of 46 jobs will be transferred from its existing mill at North Melbourne to Ballarat as part of the new build there. It is not known how many of the existing staff there will choose to relocate.

The Mauri division flour mill will be built on an eight hectare site at the Ballarat West Employment Zone in Mitchell Park.

GWF employs 3000 staff across eight sites in Victoria and is one of the largest private sector employers in the state.

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Successful applicants for these new positions will gain qualifications in food processing, agriculture and leadership and management - with training costs and fees covered by GWF.

Those hired will be supported with dedicated workplace mentors, free uniforms and any necessary work-related equipment.

The jobs are being prioritised for people aged 18 to 25, women aged 45 and over, people with disability, people who are long term unemployed, Aboriginal Victorians, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, and others experiencing challenges finding work.

For more information about these job opportunities visit jobs.vic.gov.au or call the Jobs Victoria hotline on 1300 208 575.

Employment Minister Jaala Pulford said: "These jobs will enable people to start a long-term career with on-the-job training included."

Don Smallgoods managing director Will Ursell said: "We want to change the perception of factory jobs - our frontline factory staff often move through the ranks to management roles, there is so much opportunity for career progression."