Folgers Coffee Company To Expand New Orleans Region Facilities
03/24/2010
Contact Information: Darren Alberti
NEW ORLEANS — Greater New Orleans, Inc. is pleased to announce that The Folgers Coffee Company will expand two coffee production facilities in Orleans Parish and its distribution center in St. Tammany Parish.
The $69 million investment will provide an immediate boost to the region’s economy, creating 120 new direct jobs at an average annual salary of $42,000, and retaining 450 more. Louisiana Economic Development (LED) estimates that the 120 new direct jobs will result in approximately 381 new indirect jobs, meaning that the expansions will result in approximately 500 new jobs in the New Orleans region over the next 2-3 years.
“The Folgers announcement is proof-positive of the unprecedented opportunity now available for businesses in Greater New Orleans,” says Michael Hecht, President & CEO of GNO, Inc. “We are proud to partner with LED on their broad business development efforts, and look forward to ever more success for our region and state in the future.”
Folgers will expand its manufacturing facilities at Old Gentilly Rd. and Chef Menteur Hwy. in Orleans Parish, and its distribution center in Lacombe, LA in St. Tammany Parish. Combined, Louisiana Economic Development estimates that the expansions will generate $17.2 million in new state tax revenue and $4.9 million in new local tax revenue over the next 10 years, excluding corporate income taxes and local property taxes.
The expansion is encouraging news for New Orleans Mayor-elect Mitch Landrieu, who has identified economic development as a top priority for the incoming administration. “Folgers’ expansion demonstrates that New Orleans is open for business,” said Landrieu. “As we work to create good paying jobs, it’s important to retain and grow the businesses, like Folgers, that are operating in our region. This is good news for our city.”
The company’s decision to expand their distribution center in St. Tammany Parish is testament to the region’s multimodal transportation assets. “We are thrilled to be a part of this significant project,” said Brenda Reine Bertus, executive director of the St Tammany Economic Development Foundation. “Folgers has been an outstanding addition to St. Tammany for several years, and this expansion is evidence of our desirability to corporations as a logistics hub.”
LED’s recently created Business Expansion and Retention Group identified Folgers as a retention priority, due in part to its recent merger with the J. M. Smucker Company. LED and company representatives worked together to identify and pursue opportunities to increase the long-term competitiveness of Folgers operations in the New Orleans region. The expansions will result in the consolidation of all the company’s coffee production into New Orleans.
“This is a huge economic boost for the people of New Orleans and it marks the continued revitalization of the region,” said Governor Bobby Jindal. “The Folgers expansion underscores the confidence that major companies are increasingly placing in our workforce and our business climate. Since day one, we have made business retention and expansion our top economic development priority, and the Folgers expansion decision is yet another example of our strong commitment.”
To secure the expansion, LED committed an incentive package including a performance-based grant of $3.0 million for relocation costs, a refundable state tax credit from the new Retention and Modernization Program of $2.1 million, and $0.5 million in publicly owned drainage and surface improvements from the Economic Development Award Program (EDAP). Folgers also expects to take advantage of the Industrial Tax Exemption Program, Quality Jobs Program, and customized training solutions from Louisiana FastStart.
LED Secretary Stephen Moret said, “We are especially grateful that Governor Jindal and the Legislature provided us the new tools necessary to secure this outcome, including our Business Expansion and Retention Group, the Louisiana FastStart program, and the brand new Retention and Modernization Program passed during the last legislative session.”
The Folgers Coffee Company is a subsidiary of Fortune 500 corporation The J. M. Smucker Company, which is a leading marketer and manufacturer of fruit spreads, retail packaged coffee, peanut butter, shortening and oils, ice cream toppings, sweetened condensed milk, and health and natural foods beverages in North America.
