advertisement

Richelieu Foods to open facility in Wheeling

Richelieu Foods Inc. said Thursday it is expanding and opening a manufacturing plant in Wheeling, where it will hire about 125 workers.

The company, which makes private-label pizza, salad dressings and sauces, plans to move into a 115,000-square-foot facility at 120 W. Palatine Road and be fully operational later this year. It has another plant at 1325 Chase Ave. in Elk Grove Village, where it makes similar foods.

"We are very excited to announce this expansion and for the capacity it will add to our manufacturing network. When the site is fully operational it will significantly increase our frozen pizza and dressings capabilities to a level required to support the growth of our customers," Richelieu President and CEO Tim O'Connor said in a statement. "The expanded capacity will not only provide the ability to meet our customers' demands today but for a number of years into the future."

The Wheeling plant will receive property tax discounts from the village and Cook County. An overall tax savings amount was not immediately available, said John C. Melaniphy III, Wheeling's economic development director.

Facilities in Wisconsin, Kansas and elsewhere were considered before the company picked the Wheeling location. Local officials and the governor encouraged the company to choose Wheeling, Melaniphy said.

The Wheeling plant has been vacant since 2013 when another food processing company, Orval Kent Food Co., left.

The company, founded in 1862, services customers in both retail and food service in the United States and Canada. It is headquartered in Braintree, Massachusetts, and employs more than 800 employees in Wisconsin, Iowa and Ohio.

Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.