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The cash was used through the organization to build a new oat-extraction production line at the plant, which began operations last month.
SunOpta says this is its “second-largest allocation” to date in the U. S. U. S.
The move is expected to allow the organization to increase its annual oat milk production by 60% from 2025, he told Just Food.
The installed generation uses a “proprietary enzymatic process” that transforms oats “into a liquid oat base” that will be used to make oat milk, ice cream and oat-based yogurt.
SunOpta processes dry and liquid oat base as an element for other food and beverage brands at the Modesto facility, as well as personal brand oat milks for brands, foodservice and stores in the U. S. U. S.
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It has 3 brands of plant-based milks: West Life, Sown and Dream.
Seventeen new jobs have been created at the new production line, bringing the total number of employees at the factory to 208.
In addition to Modesto, SunOpta has three U. S. -based broth and non-perishable beverage plants. In Allentown, Pennsylvania, Alexandria, Minnesota, and Midlothian, Texas.
The company said it expects the long-shelf plant-based milk category to grow “in single digits” in terms of volume in 2024, “across all channels. “
Commenting on the news, SunOpta CEO Brian Kocher said the investment is “well-positioned to meet developing market demand for plant-based milk and other oat-based products. “
Joe Gerhardt, Modesto’s senior plant manager, added, “We are proud to be a long-term local network leader and partner, driving the food supply for the long term. “
In May, the plant-based milk maker said it would be open to mergers and acquisitions until the end of the year.
Speaking to analysts after the release of its first-quarter results for the period ending March 30, Kocher said: “We will take a look at interesting return on investment (ROI) plans, see potential percentage buybacks over the percentage value at that time, or interesting mergers and acquisitions. “minutes”.
And he added: “These are the characteristics that we continue to compare every day. And once there, towards the end of the year, we will give you news. “
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