There is no shortage of 'big things' in Australia with the Big Banana or the Big Merino an entrenched feature of many road trips and the backdrop of countless holiday snaps.

Now another 'big thing' is set to become a new permanent fixture of the countryside, this time in the form of a giant tin of Milo.

Overwhelming support from fans

The iconic Australian milk drink has been popular since its creation in 1934 after it was invented during the Depression to help ensure children received enough nutrients from their daily diet.

Milo was first produced, and continues to be produced, in a factory at Smithtown, near Kempsey, on the New South Wales mid-north coast.

Factory manager Matthew Oram said they had received overwhelming support from fans for a Big Milo Tin, after the idea was first floated on social media.

"We wanted to do something at the factory to recognise the fact that Smithtown is the home of a worldwide icon, Milo," he said.

"Then a bit of a campaign started on social media and it really gathered momentum so we felt compelled to react and answer the fans.

"We are close to 100,000 people supporting the call for it on social media."

Thomas Mayne invented the powdered drink during the Depression. ( Supplied: Slim Dusty Centre )

Location of tin still to be decided

Many of those on social media who have supported the idea are Smithtown residents, keen to see the icon built in their hometown.

"This new Milo tin should be in the middle of Smithtown, NSW, where we make Milo. There's a few great sights available and it would give the town some notoriety," Irene Clarke wrote on Facebook.

Karen Simmons supported that idea.

"It's so exciting. My great-grandfather started work there [at the Smithtown factory] when it opened," she wrote.

Young women working at a Milo Milk Bar. ( Supplied: Slim Dusty Centre )

Mr Oram said location details and the actual size of the Big Milo Tin were still being determined, with the help of feedback from social media.

"We are asking the fans but certainly, in the Macleay Valley it would be great to have it somewhere close to Smithtown, but we will let the fans decide," he said.

Mr Oram said the giant tin would be built in 2019 to celebrate Milo's 85th year of manufacturing in Smithtown.

"The finer details are yet to be worked through [and] the concept is very new, but we are committed to doing it," he said.