ST. LOUIS — Nestlé Purina PetCare has announced an estimated $450 million investment to open a factory in Eden, NC, to produce pet food.
Located along the Virginia border, the new factory will revitalize a former MillerCoors brewery. Preliminary plans call for Purina to renovate the existing structure in Rockingham County and produce dry dog and cat food brands, including Purina Pro Plan, Purina ONE and Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets.
The site is located on 1,300-plus acres near the border of North Carolina and Virginia. Purina plans to employ more than 300 people at its new factory location by 2024.
Nestlé Purina has received the OK for $24.6 in North Carolina incentives and $24.4 million in local incentives, contingent upon meeting job creation and investment targets, the Triad Business Journal reports.
The expansion is part of a broader growth plan for Purina that began last year with the grand opening of the company’s newest wet pet food factory and distribution center in Hartwell, GA, according to a press release. The new Eden factory will join Purina’s network of 21 existing manufacturing locations across the U.S. and will become operational in 2022.
“Eden is Purina’s first manufacturing operation in North Carolina, and through this expansion we build on our more than 90-year history of making science-based dog and cat foods that pet owners trust,” said Nina Leigh Krueger, president, Nestlé Purina U.S. “Despite the challenging times we have all been living in, Purina has remained resilient. This strategic and long-term investment demonstrates our commitment to providing high-quality nutrition for pets. We’re thankful for the great partnership at the state and local levels, and we are excited to be a part of this community now and for many years to come.”
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said: “North Carolina’s manufacturing workforce is strong, and this announcement is an important new phase in Nestlé Purina’s growth. This company’s global reputation for quality products, innovation, sustainability, and corporate citizenship fits well with our state’s workforce, economy, and the business community.”
Purina’s new operations “will be designed with sustainability at the forefront, including a commitment to send zero waste for disposal, and production processes designed to recover and reuse heat and water,” according to the release. Purina is also “striving to make the facility 100 percent powered by renewable electricity in the shortest practical timeframe, while supporting the company’s ambition for zero environmental impact in company operations by 2030.”
When MillerCoors closed its plant on the site in 2016, 520 jobs were lost.