Whiteware manufacturing has been replaced by milk powder and cheese at the former Fisher and Paykel factory, which is being transformed into a dry and cool store for dairy products from Fonterra's Edendale and Stirling factories.
Fonterra's managing director of trade and operations Gary Romano said the size of the North Taieri site meant there was an opportunity to work with importers and exporters to turn it into an inland port.
Access was being improved with rail lines linking the site to the south and the north, including to Port Otago, about to be laid, and while his thinking was at an early stage, Mr Romano hoped other businesses would look at using the site.
Among benefits for Fonterra would be containers full of imported products going to the site to be emptied will be able to be refilled with dairy products for export.
"It aligns what Fonterra wants to do and New Zealand needs to do," he said.
The first milk powder is in storage, and once construction of the warehouse is complete in September, there will be capacity to store 45,000 tonnes of dry product and 17,000 tonnes of cool storage.
Virtually all product movement in and out of the warehouse would be by rail.
Mr Romano said Fonterra planned to build further storage hubs around the country to consolidate a network of 80 warehouse sites.
Several seasons ago, it built up a large amount of inventory, which required storage at 150 warehouse sites, he said.
So far, 21 people were employed at the North Taieri warehouse but that was expected to grow to 60 in September.
