DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Utz® Quality Foods, Inc., the U.S.’s largest privately held snack food brand, celebrates the attainment of its integration milestones related to its 2015 purchase of Condor Snack Company of Denver, CO and Keystone Pretzel Bakery of Lititz, PA.
Recognizing the growing consumer demand for unique and healthier snack foods, Condor Snacks and Keystone Pretzel have played a key role in supporting Utz® to further generate consumer excitement around craft, better-for-you, and regional snack food offerings. Both facilities provide a range of incremental capabilities to support Utz’s strategic brand portfolio expansion including gluten free, non-GMO, organic, and new manufacturing capabilities using unique and healthier oils.
During the past year, the Team has worked together to implement new processes and practices, while implementing a new management information system through partner, NetSuite, designed to ensure a steady flow of information and key business insights.
Said Don Dixon, VP General Manager, Condor Division, “The combined Teams are working very well together, sharing best practices and leveraging a range of ideas to further increase capacities, improve efficiencies, and take advantage of our core capabilities. Additionally, this has paid dividends to our existing private brand partners where we have been able to enhance our partnerships further.”
Through the combined Team’s work, along with a 40% increase in work-force and greater than $2.5mm capital investment, Utz® has added incremental capabilities at both facilities, which will play an important role in producing Utz’s existing family of brands including: Utz®, Dirty® Potato Chips, Good Health® and Bachman® brands. And, Condor’s Denver facility, in particular, is uniquely situated to produce Utz® offerings locally, along with the upcoming plan to implement a direct-store delivery (DSD) model for Colorado’s largest grocery stores.
“We are very pleased with the seamless integration of Condor Snacks and Keystone Pretzel into the Utz® family. Both of these businesses are well established and support our vertical integration model, providing incremental capabilities especially in gluten free, non-GMO, organic, and unique oils. Additionally, Condor is uniquely positioned to serve as a launch-pad to produce and distribute the Utz® brand to not just the local Denver market, but also to the West Coast,” said Dylan Lissette, President and CEO, Utz® Quality Foods, Inc.
Said Jeff Martin, Executive Vice President Sales and Marketing, Utz® Quality Foods, Inc., “Out of the gate, both Condor Snacks and Keystone Pretzel are generating great incremental sales and opportunities. Their capabilities are an important part of our strategic plan for brand development and new growth, not only in the Denver market, but also further west.”
About Utz® Quality Foods, Inc.
Utz® Quality Foods Inc., a privately-owned and family managed company founded in 1921 and based in Hanover, PA manufacturers and markets snack foods throughout the United States and internationally. The company produces a full line of snack products including potato chips, pretzels, cheese snacks, tortillas, veggie snacks, popcorn and more. Utz® has six manufacturing facilities in Pennsylvania (Hanover (4), Wilkes-Barre (1) and Lititz (1)) with additional facilities in Colorado, Louisiana and Massachusetts. Utz® Quality Foods, Inc. products are distributed nationally through grocery, mass-merchant, club stores, convenience stores, drug stores and other channels under the Utz®, Zapp’s®, Dirty® Potato Chips, Good Health®, Bachman®, Bachman Jax®, Wachusett®, Snikiddy® and other brands. For information about Utz® or its products, please visit www.utzsnacks.com or call 1-800-FOR-SNAX.
Recently announced, Utz® Quality Foods is presently in process of purchasing Golden Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: GLDC), the Birmingham, Alabama based maker of Golden Flake® snacks. The deal expected to close in Quarter 4, 2016.