SALINA (KSNT) – One of the leading food producers in the U.S. will invest in its pizza manufacturing plant in Central Kansas.

Schwan’s announced Thursday that it would be expanding the refrigeration distribution center at its pizza manufacturing plant in Salina by 140,000 square feet. This will create 225 new jobs, according to the Office of the Governor. A total of $600 million has been invested into Schwan’s Salina location.

Schwan’s is recognized as a leading food producer in the U.S. and is in the process of adding 400,000 square feet to the manufacturing side of its Salina facility, according to the Office of the Governor. The company promised there would be additional projects in the coming years after it began expansion in 2020.

“In 2020, we had the honor of announcing to the Salina community a major investment that would enable us to continue to provide delicious pizzas to millions of families for decades to come,” Dimitrios Smyrnios, CEO of the Schwan’s Company, said. “I feel a lot of pride and I am also very much humbled by everyone’s execution of this project.”

This latest expansion will more than double the size of Schwan’s distribution center built in 2006. Work is expected to begin in 2023 and be completed by early 2025. Schwan’s manufacturing and distribution components in Salina will exceed 1 million combined square feet upon completion.

The additional distribution center space is expected to be used to increase storage for the pizzas produced at the plant, according to the Office of the Governor. A new, state-of-the-art 38,000 pallet-position racking system with three automated pallet cranes will also be added during the expansion.

“This new distribution center will support our expanded production capabilities over the long term,” Smyrnios said. “On behalf of everyone at Schwan’s and our parent company, CJ, I once again want to thank the Salina community and federal, state, and local officials in Kansas for helping us make this expansion a success. We especially want to thank our employees at the facility for continuing to make the highest-quality foods.” 

Schwan’s got its start as a dairy operation in rural Minnesota. It now focuses on providing quality foods in the U.S., according to the company’s website. To learn more about Schwan’s, click here.