TEXAS – Cacique, a leading Hispanic food company in the US, has inaugurated the construction of a new dairy processing facility in Texas, US to meet growing demand for its products.
According to a statement from Cacique, the new facility will be built at a cost of US$88 million and should begin operations in autumn next year.
Around 200 full-time jobs are expected to be created at the new site which is located in the Texan city of Amarillo.
Cacique says the planned 200,000-square-foot facility will be equipped to handle production of the company’s Mexican-style cheeses, cremas and yogurts.
Cacique CEO Gil de Cardenas said he wants to expand the company his parents started to a wider market, as they build the fourth facility in Amarillo. He said this move will help them reach the rest of the U.S. more efficiently.
“This will be very important for us. This is a pivot point for our business to really build it onto the rest of the country because of where we are centered in California,” de Cardenas said at the groundbreaking.
“It’s hard to reach the East because of just distribution costs and the cost of doing business in California a little higher, but more, I think it’s a distribution piece.”
The project is being supported by a Texas Enterprise Fund grant as well as an incentive package that was recently approved by the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation and the City Council of Amarillo.
“We are honoured that Cacique chose to make Amarillo their new home,” said Kevin Carter, president and CEO of the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation.
“The addition of Cacique will help us continue to build Amarillo into a food processing powerhouse.”
Cacique operates a number of facilities, including a dairy processing plant in City of Industry, California, a meat processing facility in Cedar City, Utah and a salsa plant in Gilbert, Arizona.
In January 2021, the company sold a minority stake in the business to local investment manager The Baupost Group.
The California-based and family-owned Company, which is home to a range of products including cheese, dips, yogurts, creams and chorizo, said the injection of cash will accelerate its growth.
The investment, according to the company, will particularly enable it to expand production capacity, increase R&D to drive product innovation and enhance its national presence.
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