Dreyer’s Ice Cream investing $145M and expanding operations
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Inside INdiana Business) — Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream says it is growing its Indiana footprint. The company has announced plans to invest over $145 million to expand its production facility in Fort Wayne and add up to 145 jobs by the end of 2024.
The company says the expansion includes two new production lines for its Drumstick products.
“We have been serving customers across the U.S. our delicious and quality ice cream for over 35 years from our Fort Wayne facility, and are very excited to continue to grow our capacity and team to make more ice cream with this sizable investment,” said Julia Zirpoli, factory manager at Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream’s Fort Wayne facility.
Dreyer’s currently employs about 400 at its Fort Wayne facility. It is part of England-based Froneri, which purchased Nestle USA’s ice cream in December 2019 for $4 billion.
The news come as Dairy Farmers of America announced Tuesday it is shutting down operations at its ice cream plant in Adams County, leaving 160 employees without jobs.
Layoffs at the plant in Decatur will begin in September. DFA says the layoffs are due to “changing market conditions.”