CHICAGO, Sept. 08, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today marks the grand opening of North America’s largest dedicated allergy-friendly* bakery, which is owned and operated by Enjoy Life Foods, the leading brand in the growing Free-From category in the United States. Located in Jeffersonville, Ind., the new state-of-the-art facility is also Certified Gluten Free and dedicated nut-free.
The Jeffersonville site boasts 200,000 square feet of modernized production capacity and will continue Enjoy Life’s commitment to high-quality product craftsmanship, producing and packaging all of the brand’s baked free-from products, including cookies, snack bars, chocolate bars, baking chocolate, baking mixes, and savory snacks. All products made in the bakery are currently available in the U.S. as well as a number of global markets including Canada, South Africa, Israel, Mexico, and Singapore, and will soon launch throughout Asia and the EU. More than 100 employees from Jeffersonville and the surrounding local communities have already joined the growing team at the new bakery, and Enjoy Life plans to bring on 100 additional employees in 2017.
“This is a historic milestone for our company and for the allergy-friendly community as a whole,” said Joel Warady, Chief Marketing & Innovation Officer at Enjoy Life Foods. “With our new bakery, we have the opportunity to provide our many loyal fans with delicious free-from products they have come to know and love. Having the largest dedicated allergy-friendly* bakery in North America also allows us to further grow our operations to provide even more great-tasting products to families across the U.S. and Canada, while expanding our reach to people seeking allergy-friendly food options around the world. We’re excited to establish our manufacturing footprint in the State of Indiana – the Crossroads of America – and to welcoming new employees to our ever growing Enjoy Life family.”
With the dramatic rise in food allergies in recent years, including 75 million people currently living with food allergies and intolerances,1 and approximately 25 million people who require gluten-free foods due to Celiac Disease or gluten avoidance2, Enjoy Life Foods is well-positioned for significant growth with the opening of its new bakery. The new site will also help Enjoy Life expand its business operations and reach new heights, both in North America and beyond.
These ambitious growth plans are supported and enabled by Mondelēz International (NASDAQ:MDLZ), parent company of Enjoy Life Foods since February 2015. The company continues to operate Enjoy Life Foods as a separate, wholly-owned subsidiary, nurturing Enjoy Life’s entrepreneurial spirit while providing back-office support and global resources to help accelerate growth. As the world’s leading snacking company, Mondelēz International is focused on becoming the leader in well-being snacks, with the goal of about half of its portfolio comprised of well-being choices by 2020.
As part of today’s Grand Opening celebration, Enjoy Life Foods will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony with local dignitaries and Enjoy Life employees, followed by bakery tours and a Q&A session with leading food allergy expert, Dr. Ruchi Gupta.
About Enjoy Life Foods
Enjoy Life Foods is the leading brand in the growing Free-From category, featuring a robust portfolio of Certified Gluten Free and Non-GMO Project Verified products that are free-from the eight most common food allergens, identified as milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and soybeans. Founded with the goal to create great-tasting, allergy-friendly foods, the Enjoy Life line includes cookies, snack bars, chocolate bars, baking chocolate, baking mixes, seed and fruit mixes, and lentil-based chips, called Plentils, all available in natural and conventional grocers and mass retailers throughout the United States and Canada. Enjoy Life’s mission and brand promise is to deliver safe, better-for-you products free-from the top eight food allergens, but not free-from taste so everyone can Enjoy Life and Eat Freely! To learn more about Enjoy Life, visit www.enjoylifefoods.com, ‘Like’ us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.
*Products made at this Enjoy Life Foods allergy-friendly bakery will not contain milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat or soybeans.
1New Hope Network. “Gluten-free forecast: what’s next?” Retrieved from http://beta.newhope.com/download-gluten-free-forecast-whats-next
2The Gluten-Free Agency. Retrieved from www.thegluten-freeagency.com/gluten-free-market-trends/