Amy’s Kitchen prepares UK manufacturing base
The firm, which operates two manufacturing sites in Santa Rosa, California, and Medford, Oregon, has been supplying UK customers such as Holland and Barrett, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Planet Organic and Fresh and Wild for eight years, and now feels it has sufficient traction to produce locally, director of international business development Steve Warnert told FoodManufacture.co.uk.
“We have been exporting Amy’s products to the UK for the past eight years. Our decision to set up a production facility here is based on our sales results and the opportunity we feel is here for the kinds of foods we offer.
“We’ve received a very positive welcome from customers big and small and are now in the process of making presentations. An exciting part of this is showing off new packaging that is being created for the UK market.”
30 new jobs
The firm took over a factory in the Oakley Hay Industrial estate in Corby in December, and is now kitting it out in advance of a spring launch, said Warnert.
The Corby site will make “frozen vegetarian ready meals and tinned soups using local and organic ingredients as much as possible”, said Warnert.
“Our goal is to be producing several of our products by early May. Until that time we will continue to supply the market from our US facilities in California and Oregon.”
The move will initially create about 30 jobs, he added: “We expect this number to grow considerably as sales develop.”
Family-run business
A family owned business, Amy's Kitchen was launched in 1987 after Rachel and Andy Berliner (formerly president of herbal tea maker Magic Mountain Herb Tea) had a child called Amy.
The firm, whichspecialises in vegetarian food andfood for people on special diets (gluten free, dairy free etc), produces a wide range of products in the US from pasta sauces and vegetarian meals to snacks and veggie burgers.
