Allens pours $13.5 million into Van Buren expansion
by June 28, 2010 12:23 pm 116 views
Siloam Springs-based Allens Inc. formally announced Monday (June 28) a more than $20 million expansion that includes a $13.5 million investment in the company’s Van Buren operation.
Allens, which claims to be the largest privately held vegetable company in the U.S., is in the process of expanding its Van Buren plant, a plant in Oakfield, N.Y., and a Fort Worth plant it recently acquired from ConAgra Foods.
“The Texas acquisition provides a platform to continue to aggressively grow canned business in Texas, the Southwest and West. The Arkansas expansion will increase the company’s total capacity on canned sweet potatoes. The New York expansion will help the company to continue to capitalize on frozen vegetable success in the Northeast as well as canned vegetables,” the company noted in a statement.
Fort Worth provides a 200,000-square-foot plant on 20 acres that the company says will also be a “strategic distribution point.” The $4.7 million investment in the operation will also add 100 jobs.
Allens will add a $2.2 million dollar canned vegetable operation in Oakfield (east of Buffalo) that will begin production with sweet peas in June 2010. The plant will then produce green beans, corn and beets, as well as many dry pack bean products.
The $13.5 million investment in Van Buren expands the company’s capacity to process sweet potatoes.
“Last year marked a record-breaking year of sweet potato sales for Allens," Bobby Ray, senior vice president of retail sales and marketing at Allens, said in a statement. “Now with the $13.5 million dollar expansion of the company’s plant in Van Buren, AR, it is expected that we will grow our total sweet potato capacity even more than ever.”
Allens sweet potato brands include Princella, Sugary Sam, and Trappey’s. Allens, formed in 1926, own brands include Allens, Crest Top, Freshlike, Popeye, Princella, Royal Prince, Sugary Sam, Sunshine, Trappey’s, Wagon Master and Veg-All. The company’s products are sold nationally and internationally and produced in 12 manufacturing plants in Arkansas, Georgia, New York, North Carolina, Texas and Wisconsin.