Golfo di Napoli Dairy announced plans Thursday to build a commercial organic cheese plant in Huntington County, creating up to 35 new, high-wage jobs by 2021.
“Indiana’s agriculture industry supports approximately 107,500 jobs, providing opportunities for Hoosiers and their families across the state,” said Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch, who also serves as Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture. “With nearly 1,000 Hoosier dairies and 26 dairy processing plants, Golfo di Napoli Dairy will have quick and plentiful access to fresh milk, making Indiana the perfect fit for its first U.S. production facility.”
Golfo di Napoli Dairy, a newly-established venture, will be owned and operated by a team of fourth generation cheese producers from Italy. The company plans to invest $9.5 million to establish the plant, constructing an approximately 3,000-square-foot plant on a 40-acre site along Interstate-69 at Exit 278 in Warren. The plant, which will utilize USDA certified organic milk from Fair Oaks Farms, will produce mozzarella, burrata, ricotta, provolone and other cheeses made using the pasta filata technique, which is traditionally used in the Naples region.
“We chose Indiana because we believe that it is the perfect location to produce authentic Neapolitan mozzarella, serving customers across the Midwest,” said Antonio Somma, president of Golfo di Napoli Dairy. “This facility and our partnership with Fair Oaks Farm will allow us to expand our cheese production expertise to the U.S. Local organic milk with incredible Italian taste, as we like to say.”
The company, which has already acquired the land, plans to begin construction in September once the appropriate permits are finalized. Golfo di Napoli Dairy expects to begin hiring for the new facility before the end of 2018 in order to begin production in February 2019.
Golfo di Napoli Dairy is the 30th Italian-owned business to locate operations in Indiana, joining companies like Dallara, Sirmax North America, Italpollina, OMR Automotive, Somaschini North America and Coram USA. Europe-based affiliates, including Italy-based firms, employ approximately 113,900 Hoosiers across the state.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) offered Golfo di Napoli Dairy up to $300,000 in conditional tax credits based on the company’s job creation plans. These incentives are performance-based, meaning until Hoosiers are hired, the company is not eligible to claim incentives. The Huntington County Board of Commissioners approved additional grant funding at the request of Huntington County Economic Development Corporation.
