Blue Buffalo building Indiana plant and R&D facility

Blue Buffalo announced the acquisition of land for its new Heartland Pet Food Manufacturing complex on 89 acres in Richmond, Wayne County, Indiana. Blue Buffalo joins three other pet food companies with facilities in Wayne County.

photo by Andrea Gantz
photo by Andrea Gantz

Blue Buffalo announced the acquisition of land for its new Heartland Pet Food Manufacturing complex on 89 acres in Richmond, Indiana, according to a Blue Buffalo press release. The complex will include a pet food manufacturing plant, an R&D facility and an attached warehouse. Construction is expected to commence in the second half of 2016.

"This is a very big day for Blue Buffalo," said Chairman and Founder Bill Bishop in a press release. "This new, state of the art addition to our manufacturing network will complement our facility in Missouri. We expect to further increase our internal production capacity and now will have two of the most modern manufacturing facilities in the pet food industry…We are also very proud of our plan to create over 160 full time jobs and look forward to being an upstanding partner in the Richmond community."

Regional growth in pet food manufacturing

Blue Buffalo joins three other pet food companies with facilities in Wayne County, where Richmond is located, reported local news outlet FOX59.

Multiple sites were evaluated as a possible home for the plant, according to Blue Buffalo. Richmond, which lies 70 miles east of Indianapolis, won out for a several reasons.

"The town of Richmond really impressed us,” according to Kurt Schmidt, Blue Buffalo's CEO. “The location of Richmond is ideal for Blue Buffalo, and this coupled with the strong work ethic embedded here in Richmond made this the perfect choice for us. We look forward to being a part of the community for many years to come.”

In addition, Blue Buffalo may have been swayed by economic concessions in Richmond. The Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered more than $1.6 million in conditional tax credits to Blue Buffalo because of the company’s job creation plans, reported FOX59. Blue Buffalo will invest more than $100 million in the new plant’s construction and outfitting at 4748 Industries Road. The plant will then create jobs in food processing, quality control and management.


Pet food manufacturer Blue Buffalo to build plant in Richmond, create 165 new jobs

RICHMOND, Ind. - A Connecticut-based pet food company will put a new manufacturing facility in Richmond, creating up to 165 new jobs. Blue Buffalo Pet Products will invest more than $100 million to build and equip the production and distribution facility at 4748 Industries Road.

Read More at Fox 59

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