General Mills Upgrades Large Ohio Manufacturing Facility to Improve Output

Company Name: General Mills
Location: Wellston
Industry Sector: Food and Agribusiness
Company Profile: General Mills is a leading global food company whose purpose is to make food the world loves. Its brands include Cheerios, Annie’s, Yoplait, Nature Valley, Häagen-Dazs, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Old El Paso, Wanchai Ferry, Yoki, BLUE and more. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, General Mills generated fiscal 2019 net sales of U.S. $16.9 billion. In addition, General Mills’ share of non-consolidated joint venture net sales totaled U.S. $1.0 billion.
Company Website: www.generalmills.com

Project Summary:

• Type of Project: Expansion

Company Need:

General Mills is one of southeastern Ohio’s largest employers. Its Wellston plant specializes in making pizza snacks for its Totino’s brand and is one of the largest frozen food manufacturing facilities in the United States. The company sought to upgrade its capabilities and improve manufacturing output so operations could be more efficient and productive.

Testimonial:

“General Mills has been a proud and active member of the Wellston community for 18 years. We believe we have the best employees making food the world loves and we’re grateful for the ongoing support from JobsOhio and Ohio Southeast (OhioSE) to expand this talent.” – Carolyn Mendel, plant manager, General Mills in Wellston

Why Ohio?

General Mills will invest millions of dollars into its Wellston plant, and add jobs to reach a total of nearly 900 full-time employees at the facility.

The food and agribusiness industry is Ohio’s largest industry, adding $124 billion to the state’s economy annually. Ohio is home to a full industry value chain that with other industry leaders, including Bob Evans, Daisy, Dannon, Nestlé and Campbell’s.

JobsOhio and OhioSE worked together and offered a JobsOhio Economic Development Grant toward building, machinery, equipment, and infrastructure costs. Jackson County Economic Development Partnership is also supporting the project with infrastructure improvements and an enterprise zone agreement for the location’s new construction plans.  Jackson County OhioMeansJobs and Area 7 Workforce Development are providing workforce assistance to further develop and train employees.

Collaborators:

Ohio Southeast Economic Development, JobsOhio, Jackson County Economic Development Partnership, Jackson County OhioMeansJobs, and Area 7 Workforce Development