Hearthside opens fourth nutritional bar production facility in Europe

US-based nutritional bar manufacturer Hearthside Food Solutions (Hearthside) has opened its fourth European production facility, as well as doubled the capacity at its bar operation in Boise, Idaho.

Both projects are reported to have been completed ahead of schedule in order to meet the growing demand for the company’s nutritional bar products.

Hearthside’s portfolio of nutritional bars includes protein, sports nutrition, meal replacement, functional and diet variants.

The company’s product range is said to be characterised by complex ingredients, formulations and recipes.

Hearthside chairman and CEO Rich Scalise said: “We have over 53 food scientists, commercialisation and innovation support specialists in our research and development (R&D) and innovation group.

“Our continued aggressive investment in R&D, product innovation, recipe development and nutrition innovation has fuelled our nutritional bar growth in North America and Europe.

“These capacity increases enable us to meet our customers’ ever-increasing nutritional bar volume and formulation needs.”

The company’s new production facility has been opened at its manufacturing and R&D campus in Leerdam, the Netherlands.

Hearthside expects to increase its European nutritional bar capacity by more than 40% with the opening of its new manufacturing plant.

The new facility will also leverage Hearthside’s European bar formulation lab, as well as more than 3,000 proprietary recipes from the company’s nutritional bar portfolio.

Hearthside supply chain senior vice-president Dwayne Hughes said: “Performing at world-class bar production standards sets us apart, but it is only part of the story.

“Seamlessly melding our R&D, nutrition, formulation, product innovation and commercialisation capabilities into our manufacturing processes enables our customers to bring superior products to market faster.

“We drive quality, innovation and speed-to-market.”

The company also announced that the production capacity has been doubled at its Boise nutritional bar formulation and production facility.

The site was previously used as Nestle / Power Bar plant before being acquired by Hearthside in 2015.

Hearthside was originally established in 2009 and operates 25 full-service production facilities across North America and Europe, including 13 facilities that are primarily engaged in the production of nutrition bars.