Reily Foods (JFG) to Expand

Communications Director

Kristin Farley
[email protected]
(865) 215-2589

400 Main St., Room 691
Knoxville, TN 37902

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Reily Foods (JFG) to Expand

Posted: 06/13/2005
Mayor Bill Haslam and Robert C. Maurer, President and Chief Executive Officer of Reily Foods Co. announced today that the company will expand its Knoxville operation with the construction of a new coffee roasting facility.

 The company will invest more than $12 million in the 33,000 square foot expansion at its facility on Mynatt Avenue, which is located inside the City's Empowerment Zone. Reily Foods - the manufacturer of JFG products, Luzianne Tea, Blue Plate Mayonnaise and Swans Down Cake Flour - employs nearly 160 people in Knoxville, and will hire an additional 16 people because of the expansion.

Mayor Haslam and Robert Maurer were joined by Mike Edwards, President/CEO of the Knoxville Area Chamber Partnership in celebrating the announcement with a groundbreaking ceremony, which was attended by the company's local employees, as well as community and business leaders.

"We're very pleased to be making this investment in Knoxville, where we have enjoyed a rich history, particularly with the JFG label," Maurer stated. "Our workforce is top quality, and the city is a very effective site to serve our customers throughout the eastern United States." Mayor Haslam said a number of agencies - the City, the Chamber Partnership, KUB, TVA, Knox County and the state of Tennessee - were instrumental in facilitating Reily Foods' decision."Our community is working together as never before to create the environment in which businesses can grow and succeed here," Mayor Haslam said. "Having a manufacturer of these notable brand names choose our city in which to expand tells the world that Knoxville is a great place to do business."

"I am honored and proud that the company chose Knoxville for this significant commitment," the Mayor stated. Edwards noted the Chamber Partnership discovered that Reily Foods' was considering the expansion in April 2004 during a site visit to the company. "Helping existing industries grow is an important mission of Jobs Now! and the Knoxville Area Chamber Partnership, but a company doesn't grow in a vacuum," Edwards noted. "When an company grows it receives offers to relocate from other communities, and even other countries. "The fact that Jobs Now's Existing Industry program identified ways to help Reily Foods grow and our economic development professionals were able to convince them to stay here is a testament to the strength of our economic assets, the dedication of our political leaders and our strong and committed workforce," Edwards said. Reily Foods intends to begin construction of the project this summer, with a planned completion of summer 2006. Wm. B. Reily & Company, Inc. is a private holding company founded in 1902 whose operating subsidiaries include The Reily Companies, Inc., Reily Foods Company, Abita Water Company and The Standard Companies, Inc. JFG Coffee Company was purchased from the Goodson family in 1965. The company's headquarters is located in New Orleans and three manufacturing facilities are located in New Orleans, Knoxville and Baltimore.