Press Release
U.S. Department of Commerce Invests $2.5 Million to Boost Food-based Entrepreneurial Development in New Jersey
Contact: EDA Public Affairs Department, (202) 482-4085
October 5, 2017
WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross today announced that the Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $2.5 million grant to the Cumberland County Improvement Authority of Millville, New Jersey, to help build a food commercialization center that will support the county’s food production cluster. According to grantee estimates, the project is expected to create 190 jobs and attract $1.5 million in private investment.
“The Trump Administration is committed to supporting local efforts to expand and attract industrial development,” said Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. “The new Food Industry Commercialization Center will make the region more competitive by providing the space that entrepreneurs working in the food industry require to further develop their businesses.”
The project will include the construction of a 31,000 square foot multi-tenant industrial food processing space, with common shipping and administrative space, HVAC, fire protection, refrigerator system, and utilities such as water, sewer, natural gas, telephone, and electric. The facility will provide space for new food production companies that have expanded and outgrown the nearby Rutgers Food Innovation Center. The project was made possible by the regional planning efforts led by the South Jersey Economic Development District (SJEDD). EDA funds SJEDD to bring together the public and private sectors to create an economic development roadmap to strengthen the regional economy, support private capital investment, and create jobs.
About the U.S. Economic Development Administration (www.eda.gov)
The mission of the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) is to lead the federal economic development agenda by promoting competitiveness and preparing the nation's regions for growth and success in the worldwide economy. An agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce, EDA makes investments in economically distressed communities in order to create jobs for U.S. workers, promote American innovation, and accelerate long-term sustainable economic growth.