Alabama researchers focus on peanut genome to improve harvests
Peanuts are an important part of rural Alabama’s economy, and the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology is doing innovative research aimed at producing healthier harvests. Scientists at the Huntsville facility have partnered with the state’s farmers and agricultural industry leaders on genomic projects involving peanuts. The work involves an integrated approach, with researchers using input from…
Koch Foods begins operations at new $60 million Alabama facility
ATTALLA, Alabama — Representatives of Koch Foods joined state and local leaders in Etowah County on Thursday to formally open the company’s state-of-the-art grain storage and distribution facility in Attalla. Koch Foods (pronounced “Cook”) said the new poultry feed-mill will create 32 new jobs with an annual payroll of $1 million. The company invested more…
Tenax plans $1 million in upgrades, new jobs at rural Conecuh plant
EVERGREEN, Alabama — Tenax Corp. plans to invest $1 million on improvements and new production machinery at its manufacturing facility in Evergreen, where it has operated for three decades, according to Conecuh County Economic Development. In addition, Tenax will create eight to 12 additional jobs tied to a new initiative to make the Evergreen facility…
Niagara Bottling to invest $112 million in new Alabama production facility
OPELIKA, Alabama — Governor Kay Ivey announced today that Niagara Bottling LLC, one of the nation’s leading beverage manufacturers, plans to open a new production facility in Opelika with an investment estimated to reach $112 million. The bottling plant, located in the Northeast Opelika Industrial Park along Interstate 85, will create 50 jobs initially. “Niagara…
Mercedes-Benz opens battery factory for Alabama-built electric vehicles
WOODSTOCK, Alabama — Mercedes-Benz today officially opened a new battery plant on the automaker’s Bibb County campus, a few months before the start of production of all-electric Mercedes-EQ vehicles at its Alabama manufacturing center. Mercedes will produce the EQS SUV and EQE SUV in its plant in Alabama, as part of a global push to…
Kroger creating 160 jobs to launch grocery delivery service in Birmingham
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama — Kroger Co. announced plans today to hire 161 new employees in Birmingham as the national grocery chain rolls out its e-commerce grocery delivery service in the region. The BBA announced today that Kroger has leased a 50,000-square-foot facility at 30 West Oxmoor Road that will serve as a last-mile spoke location for…
Bonnie Plants opens expanded greenhouse facilities after Alabama expansion
UNION SPRINGS, Alabama — Bonnie Plants, the nation’s largest grower of vegetable and herb plants for home gardens, today unveiled a multimillion-dollar expansion and upgrade of the company’s greenhouse facilities in rural Bullock County. Opelika-based Bonnie Plants said the new growing and distribution facilities in Union Springs are designed to strengthen e-commerce operations and improve production,…
Evonik plans to invest $176.5 million in Alabama expansion project
MOBILE, Alabama — German specialty chemicals company Evonik announced today that it is launching an expansion project at its Mobile area manufacturing facility that will bolster its animal nutrition business line while also reducing the site’s carbon footprint. Plans call for Evonik to build a plant at its Mobile County site to produce methyl mercaptan,…
Airbus Alabama facility in line to build tanker aircraft with Lockheed Martin
MOBILE, Alabama — The Airbus manufacturing facility in Mobile is poised for potential growth thanks to plans announced today by the aerospace company and Lockheed Martin to collaborate on a refueling tanker aircraft if the partners win an Air Force competition. Outlined today at a press conference at its Alabama facility, Airbus said it would…
Dura opens high-tech factory in Muscle Shoals for EV battery enclosures
MUSCLE SHOALS, Alabama — Governor Kay Ivey joined officials with Dura Automotive Systems today to celebrate the formal unveiling of the company’s new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Muscle Shoals, which will produce electric vehicle battery enclosures. The 200,000-square-foot facility is expected to employ more than 270 full-time workers at peak production, with an estimated investment…
