Lieutenant Gov. Mary O. Donohue announced Thursday that Kraft Foods will invest over $10 million and keep 331 jobs at its Lowville facility in New York.
“This is tremendous news for Lewis County and for our state’s manufacturing sector,” Lt Gov Donohue said. “This project will not only retain jobs for hardworking New Yorkers, but will also be a huge boost to New York’s local dairy farmers, who supply the milk used at the Lowville plant.”
Over 200 local dairy farmers supply the Lowville plant, which is Kraft Foods’ largest cream cheese manufacturing plant, processing more than 300 million pounds of milk annually.
In order to retain jobs and better position the facility for the future, the company is looking to reconfigure a packaging line at the plant, install advanced waste treatment technologies, and upgrade electrical service, which will allow for increased peak electrical demand.
As a result of its investment, Kraft Foods is eligible for a Manufacturing Assistance Program (MAP) grant of up to $950,000 to assist in machinery and equipment purchases and for related facility improvements. The MAP grant is administered by the Empire State Development Corp and encourages New York businesses employing 50 to 1,000 workers to retain manufacturing jobs.