USA— Post Holdings, an American consumer packaged goods holding company is set to invest US$110 million to expand its cereal production capacity its Sparks, Nevada facility to address capacity constraints, reduce transportation costs and to serve West Coast customers more efficiently.
Project planning and implementation will begin immediately and once the expansion is completed— projected for 2025— it will create approximately 30-40 new jobs.
“Adding capacity in Sparks will help us balance our network geographically and provide us with greater flexibility to best serve our customers,” said Nicolas Catoggio, President and CEO, Post Consumer Brands.
Cereal as has done well during the pandemic as people spend more time eating at home. The demand is expected to continue, with Statista estimating that 283 million Americans consumed cold breakfast cereals in 2020. This figure is projected to increase to 290 million in 2024, the data showed.
During the company’s first-quarter earnings call in February, CEO Robert Vitale said consumption for its U.S. branded cereal products “continues to run ahead of pre-COVID levels by nearly 2%.” He noted that its market share was just under 20%.
A bright spot for Post continues to be its popular cereal brand Pebbles, which according to data provided by Post earlier this year, grabbed the most market share out of any brand in 2021 and recording eight straight years of growth.
The plant expansion is as wager that demand for its portfolio of cereals will continue as it is and with 34.4 million people living on the West Coast, making up roughly 11% of the U.S. population, according to U.S. Census data, Post has a large market base there.
The CPG no doubt wants to make sure it can better meet changing consumer appetites and as it increases efficiencies throughout its supply chain, saving money in the process.
The plant addition appears to be the newest construction project for Post, after having announced last year plans to spend US$86 million to construct a new 215,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in West Jefferson, Ohio.
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