Voyage Foods expands cocoa-free chocolate production with new facility

US food technology company Voyage Foods is opening a new facility in Ohio to produce its cocoa-free chocolates, nut-free spreads and bean-free coffee.

The 284,000-square-foot facility in the city of Mason, expected to be operational in the new year, will expand the company’s production capabilities with an annual production capacity of 10,000 tons of chocolate.

Oakaland, California-based Voyage’s expansion follows a partnership launched in April with US agri-food giant Cargill, which positioned the latter as Voyage’s exclusive global B2B distribution partner for its spreads and chocolate.

The new facility will strengthen Voyage’s ability to meet growing demand from other manufacturers and the foodservice channel, the company said.

It also hopes to capitalize on cocoa shortages exacerbated by adverse weather conditions in key cocoa-producing countries such as Ivory Coast and Ghana.

For the period 2023-2024, global cocoa production is forecast to decline by 11% to 4.37 million tonnes.

Voyage’s product portfolio includes peanut-free roasted seed spread and hazelnut-free roasted seed spread, both free from the nine most common allergens.

Voyage says its products are made from affordable, widely available plant-based ingredients, many of which are recycled from waste and by-products.

To date, Voyage Foods has received more than $94 million in investor support.

Construction of the Ohio facility was supported by a guaranteed loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture of approximately $25 million.

“Voyage Foods expands cocoa-free chocolate production with new facility” was originally created and published by Just Food, a brand owned by GlobalData.

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