Perfetti van Melle Investing $11M in KY Plant Expansion

Confectionery and chewing gum firm Perfetti van Melle USA, the maker of Mentos and other candy brands, is investing $11 million in the expansion of its Erlanger, KY manufacturing plant, Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin’s office announced via press release Thursday.

“We are excited to be expanding our Erlanger production capabilities, and equally excited about adding to the job growth of the northern Kentucky area,” said Mehmet Yuksek, chief executive officer of Perfetti van Melle, in a statement. “Perfetti van Melle continues to be a growth leader in the non-chocolate, mint, and gum category of the confectionery industry. While we are certainly pleased about this good news for our company, we’re equally pleased that our success contributes to our region’s growth.”

Positioning to meet future demand, the effort aims to increase manufacturing and packaging capacity at the facility by 50%, the release said. The company said it will purchase new equipment, make improvements to the facility, assemble new product lines, and the hire 70 employees in 2017.

The Erlanger site houses the U.S. headquarters of Dutch-owned Perfetti van Melle and is the firm’s only U.S. manufacturing facility, employing some 300 workers.  

This January, an explosion occurred in a bulk sugar silo at the Erlanger facility, prompting an evacuation of employees, Powder & Bulk Solids reported. The incident was the third explosion in a sugar silo at the site within 12 years.

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