Expansion in Dixon 'Mmm-mmm Good'

Expansion in Dixon 'Mmm-mmm Good'
By Jennifer Gentile
Article Launched: 03/21/2008

Good economic news is hard to come by lately, but Campbell Soup Company had some for Solano County on Thursday - announcing that it will make a multi-million dollar investment in its Dixon tomato processing facility and increase production there.

The facility, built in 1975, is Campbell's largest tomato processing plant and employs approximately 180 people. The expansion, estimated at $23 million, includes new equipment and control systems for vegetable receiving, preparation, packaging and concentration, according to a news release.

The investment will increase tomato processing capacity at the plant by 15 percent," Campbell said in the release, and will also allow the company to process other vegetables for its beverages and specialty ingredients for its soups and sauces.

"This is a real coup for Solano County," said Sandy Person, vice president of the Solano Economic Development Corporation, "and a tremendous boon to our local agricultural community."

Campbell is expecting to add 60 production days to the plant's operation with the investment, the release said - resulting in a longer processing season. The season now runs from July through October, and it will run from May through October with the expansion.

With a greater processing capability, the company also intends to expand its agriculture production arrangements with farmers in seven Northern and five Southern California counties.

"The expansion of the Dixon facility will enable us to process a wide variety of California-grown vegetables," said Michael Dunn, a Campbell vice president, in a written statement. "We expect the benefits of the expansion to extend beyond Campbell and have a positive impact on local farmers, as well as the many other businesses that support farmers, such as supply and transportation companies."

According to Solano County Supervisor Mike Reagan, local farmers now can compete for contracts for more than 2,000 acres of tomatoes, amounting to 150 million pounds, and 1,300 acres of vegetables, amounting to 60 million pounds.

"Our farmers should be able to grow this stuff very well and compete for these contracts," he said.

Reagan congratulated "Team Solano" in a prepared statement, adding, "It's exciting to see all of our efforts working with major employers paying off."

"This announcement is particularly noteworthy, since Campbell was also considering locations in Mexico and Ohio," he continued. "This agricultural processing capacity increase is precisely the kind of enhancements recommended by the Ag Viability studies the Board of Supervisors commissioned over the past two years."

Campbell's beverage offerings include V-8, V-8 Splash, and V-8 Fusion. The news release said the "beverage unit was the company's best-performing business" in the 2007 fiscal year and has held strong in 2008.

The expansion, according to the company, will allow the Dixon plant to process a variety of organic vegetables for products like V-8, organic vegetable juice, Prego pasta sauce and Pace Salsa.

"We expect the expansion of our Dixon facility to help us meet the increased consumer demand for Campbell beverages," Irene Britt, a Campbell vice president and general manager, said in a written statement.

Work is expected to begin in June, Reagan said, and be completed by the summer of 2009.