Diving overview:
- Ferrero North America announced on May 7 that it has opened its first chocolate processing facility in North America and third in the world in Bloomington, Illinois. corporate press release.
- The 70,000-square-foot expansion will take place at Ferrero’s existing manufacturing campus in Bloomington, which makes Crunch, 100 Grand, and Raisnets, and currently also makes Kinder Bueno, Ferrero Rocher, and Butterfinger. are doing.
- The company originally broke ground on the Bloomington plant in October 2021 and said in a 2021 report that the project would create 50 new jobs and cost $75 million. release.
Dive Insight:
Alana Cotton, president and chief business officer of Ferrero North America, said in a statement that the expansion brings the Italian-based chocolate maker a step closer to its goal of becoming “the sweets and treats leader in the market.” said.
This investment is Expanding Ferrero Presence in IllinoisIn addition to existing manufacturing facilities in Franklin Park and Chicago, the company manufactures Butterfinger and Baby Ruth products. The confectionery company Also Innovation center opened And last year’s research and development lab.
Additionally, Ferrero announced the construction of a $214 million Kinder Bueno production facility on its Bloomington campus, which is expected to create 200 jobs once completed. Opening later this yearstated in the release.
In addition to the new project in Illinois, the company recently invested in new production capacity and capabilities at its Brantford, Ont., plant and added distribution centers in Pennsylvania, Georgia and Arizona, the release said.The company too Investing in research for Oregon hazelnut growersas a state Produces 99% of the nation’s cropsAccording to the United States Department of Agriculture.
According to the announcement, Ferrero’s North American footprint currently totals more than 5,100 employees across 12 factories with eight offices and warehouses in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean.