Ark-Tex Puts Food Manufacturing on the Menu
Published Mar 16, 2009
Sara Lee is one of several food companies with operations in the Ark-Tex region.
A good transportation infrastructure and location midway between major East Coast and West Coast markets give the Ark-Tex region a distinct distribution advantage for food-processing operations.
“Our location along Highway 30 gives us good access to major transportation routes that allow us to easily get our materials in and our products out,” says Craig Miller, plant manager for Ocean Spray Cranberries in Sulphur Springs.
Ocean Spray, a leading producer of canned and bottled juices and juice drinks, undertook a $5 million plant expansion in 2008.
Also operating in Sulphur Springs is Morningstar, a subsidiary of food and beverage producer Dean Foods. Owens Country Sausage, a subsidiary of Bob Evans Farms, acquired a facility in Sulphur Springs earlier in the decade and announced a 50,000-square-foot expansion project at the plant in 2008.
Sara Lee Bakery Group’s Paris operations produce bread, cakes and pies. Campbell Soup Co., which has a substantial presence in Paris, announced in October 2008 that it was adding production equipment to enable the plant to produce its line of V8 beverages. Campbell began operating the facility in Lamar County in 1964.
The company currently produces its Select Harvest, Chunky, Healthy Request and iconic Red and White soups at the plant, as well as Swanson broth, Prego pasta sauce and Pace salsa. The 1.5 million-square-foot facility employs nearly 900 people, and the V8 line will add 65 jobs.
Newly Weds Foods Inc., which makes food coatings and flavorings for the prepared-food industry, in 2006 picked Mt. Pleasant over 14 other communities for a $27 million production facility.
The 200,000-square-foot operation in the Cypress Industrial Park employs around 100 people and makes cracker meals, dry batter mixes and spice blends for customers in Texas and surrounding states.
“Another advantage for companies doing business in this region is the availability of an ample water supply, along with the highly dedicated and reliable labor force,” Miller of Ocean Spray says. “We have four U.S. beverage plants, and Sulphur Springs is the low-cost producer in the network. That’s because of the great work ethic we have in this region.”
Photo by Todd Bennett
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