Invoice - Blackwattle Cheese Factory

John Richard (Jack) Strong (1891-1971) was the General Manager of the South-West Co-operative Dairy Ltd. He managed four dairy factories in the south-west, including the Busselton Butter Factory between 1926 and 1929, which he turned from a failing concern into a highly prosperous business, and built the Capel Dairy Company in the 1930s.

On his retirement, the company directorate acknowledged the important role Strong played in the development of the dairy industry due to his strong business acumen and the introduction of modern and economical methods of manufacturing, which resulted in a higher return to farmers.

In 1939, Strong purchased a property in Tutunup and he and his three sons established the Blackwattle Cheese Factory, the first private cheese factory to be erected on a dairy farm in Western Australia. Blackwattle Cheese supplied cheese to Watsons of Fremantle until 1956.