(The Center Square) — The state did not provide any discretionary incentives to a Japanese probiotic beverage company building a Bartow County facility, officials said Tuesday.
Yakult U.S.A. plans to spend $305 million on the beverage production facility in Bartow County’s Highland 75 Corporate / Industrial Park, its second U.S. facility. It expects to create 90 jobs at the Northwest Georgia location.
“There were no discretionary incentives involved in this project,” a Georgia Department of Economic Development rep tells The Center Square.
The Fountain Valley, California-based company was formed in 1990 and completed its first U.S. product manufacturing facility in 2014.
“Yakult was created in Japan in 1935 and has more than 80 years of history,” Yutaka Misumi, president and CEO of Yakult U.S.A., said in an announcement. “Today, the product is sold in 40 countries, including at major retailers in the United States.
“The State of Georgia meets our business needs in terms of the climate for our production, the logistics for the product distribution, and the positive support from the state and the county,” the company executive added. “We believe that the new facility will be the main supplier for eastern and central U.S. markets. We are pleased that we will provide more opportunities for our customers in the U.S. with the opening of this new location.”
By T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor
