Firm Invests $25M to Convert Bakery into Organic Facility

Packaged baked foods firm Flowers Foods, the manufacturer of Dave’s Killer Bread products and the Nature’s Own brand, is committing $25 million to expand its bakery in Lynchburg, VA and convert it into an organic facility, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced in a release Thursday. 

“This expansion represents a tremendous opportunity for us to meet the increasing demand for our Dave’s Killer Bread organic, Non-GMO Project Verified brads,” the company’s chief operating officer, Brad Alexander, said in a statement. “We chose to convert our Lynchburg bakery for a number of reasons, including its geographic location, access to key interstate highways, and the partnership we have with local and state agencies.”

A $250,000 performance-based grant from the Virginia Investment Partnership program was approved by the governor to help the city of Lynchburg during the expansion. Flowers Foods can obtain state benefits through the Virginia Enterprise Zone program. 

“Flowers Foods’ bakery is an institution in Lynchburg,” Gov. Northam said in the release. “Focusing the bakery on the growing market for organic food will help secure its future in Virginia.”

Flowers Foods operates 46 commercial bakeries across 18 states, employing over 9700 workers. The publicly traded food manufacturer was founded in 1919.  

A recent forecast said that the global market for bakery products will reach $573.5 billion by 2024, with healthy, organic, and all-natural products leading the growth.

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