Nestlé Waters identifies location for US$50m Pennsylvania bottling facility

Nestlé Waters’ search for a new factory location is driven by growing consumer demand for bottled water, which, in 2017 surpassed soda as the most popular beverage in the US. As part of the company’s regional spring water model, the proposed factory would bottle Deer Park 100 percent Natural Spring Water for distribution to customers throughout the Mid-Atlantic.

“A Nestlé Waters bottling facility would inject tens of millions of dollars into our local economy, provide a substantial tax benefit, and bring family-wage manufacturing jobs back to our communities,” says Vern Squier, President and CEO of CBICC. “The opportunity to bring a global leader in the food and beverage industry into Centre County is a win-win-win for our workforce, our tax-base, and for economic development. We are pleased that our local efforts are helping to advance this project, and we are excited about the prospects of having Nestlé Waters North America as a corporate citizen of Centre County.”

In an effort to narrow the search for a factory location, CBICC leadership and Nestlé Waters representatives are in the process of meeting with municipal officials to gauge interest and feasibility. As part of this process, a representative from Nestlé Waters attended the Spring Township Supervisors meeting on January 2.

“In order to build a new bottling facility, we need to work closely with the community,” notes Eric Andreus, Nestlé Waters’ Natural Resource Manager in the Mid-Atlantic. “We want to know that we are choosing the right location to operate – environmentally, socially and economically.”

Scientific due diligence and community input are key to this determination. In addition to gathering feedback from local officials and residents, Nestlé Waters will conduct a thorough scientific review and due diligence process to ensure that any spring source associated with this project can sustainably support company operations over the long term, without having any adverse impact on residents’ access to water.

In early 2018, CBICC and Nestlé Waters will hold an informational open house on the possibility of building a bottled water plant in the county. Residents will have an opportunity to ask questions about the company; the potential project; and possible job opportunities.

Nestlé Waters has been operating in Pennsylvania for more than 20 years. The company has made capital investments of more than US$350 million in its Breinigsville campus, which features the first food manufacturing facility in Pennsylvania to receive the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification. Today, more than 600 Pennsylvanians work in family-wage manufacturing jobs at Nestlé Waters’ two Lehigh Valley bottling facilities.