Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. to build $50M plant in Wisconsin Rapids

Daily Reporter (Milwaukee), Nov 21, 2006 by Paul Snyder

While maybe not completely serendipitous, Ocean Spray's decision to build a $50 million plant in Wisconsin Rapids is the product of at least one happy coincidence.

Ocean Spray needs Craisins, and cranberries were a bumper crop this year in the Wisconsin Rapids region.

So Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc., Lakeville-Middleboro, Mass., announced Friday that it will build the new 100,000-square-foot plant in Wisconsin Rapids, helping quadruple production of the sweetened dried cranberries.

"We're proud to make Wisconsin Rapids a hub of Ocean Spray's growth plans, and we're fortunate that our city and state leaders made it possible for us to site this facility here," said Ocean Spray's Grower Board Chairman and long-time Wisconsin Rapids resident Francis J. Podvin in a statement Friday. "We considered other locations in the country for this plant, but our state and local officials made it economically sensible to put it right here."

Wisconsin Rapids Mayor Mary Jo Carson and her staff teamed with state officials to develop an economic development package that included tax incentives and training and development grants for the new jobs that will be created at the facility. Ocean Spray said the development will add at least 50 new jobs by 2008, and Carson said it was important not to let the opportunity slip away.

"I must first say that I have an outstanding staff, and they did so much of the legwork to bring Ocean Spray here," she said. "As soon as we heard that it was even a possibility, they could be looking here to build the plant, we put the pen to the paper."

Work ethic cited

The new plant will be built on the same property that holds the Ocean Spray's current plant for concentrating and receiving, which Port Washington, N.Y.-based Northland Cranberries Inc. sold for $28 million in 2004.

"Since we acquired the former Northland plant here two years ago, we've learned that Wisconsin Rapids is an ideal place to do business and has an excellent pool of hard-working people to employ at our plants," said Ocean Spray VP of Operations Michael Stamatakos in a statement.

Of course, a friendly reminder helps too.

"We're fortunate to be right in the heart of cranberry country, and we were sure to remind them of that," Carson said with a laugh. "It worked out nicely that cranberries actually proved to be a bumper crop this year."

Ocean Spray's board of directors last week approved the first phase of what could become a two-phase expansion. The initial investment will cover construction of the new plant, though Ocean Spray said it will also later consider a second phase that will double production and add another 50 jobs.

The announcement comes just months after Ocean Spray broke ground on a major expansion at its Markham, Wash., facility, and went fully operational with another Craisins expansion project at its Middleboro, Mass., plant.

The company also operates three other facilities in Wisconsin: a beverage bottling facility in Kenosha, a fruit receiving station in Babcock, and a plant in Tomah that was the first in the nation to manufacture Craisins.

Carson said she's happy the company is keeping Wisconsin Rapids in the mix.

"It diversifies us further," she said. "[The plant] is something that is going to continue to allow us to grow and provide a big boost to the economy. I'm thrilled with it, and the people at Ocean Spray are good people to work with."