PROGRESS: Gelita expansion nears completion at Port Neal

Because of the increased demands for its gelatine products, Gelita broke ground in March 2017 on a $22 million expansion project that will add a fourth production facility to the company's campus at 2445 Port Neal Road.

Completion of the 30,000-square-foot addition, which will adjoin current facilities, including the company's North American headquarters, is expected during the fourth quarter of the 2018 calendar year.

"Globally, Gelita's Bioactive Collagen Peptides have experienced double-digit market growth, especially in health and nutrition applications, with no sign of slowing in the future. As the pioneer in collagen peptide production and clinical research to explore health-stimulating functions, this production expansion further secures Gelita's position as market leader and allows for greater flexibility and future growth," Gelita marketing director Lara Niemann said.

Niemann said the expansion is expected to create 21 new jobs at the facility near Sergeant Bluff.  The new facilities will expand the site's production capacity by 30 percent and feature state-of-the-art technology and equipment for the production of collagen peptides.

"This expansion will allow Gelita to produce a portfolio of beef hide collagen peptides in a controlled state-of-the-art production process, the only beef hide collagen peptides produced in the United States from NAFTA raw materials," Niemann said.

Gelita makes a variety of commercial gelatine products from pork skins and cattle bones at its Port Neal plant. Those products are used as ingredients in foods and nutritional supplements for their protein content and physiological benefits. Gelita's collagen peptides are key ingredients in health and nutritional supplements for beauty, joint and bone health, body toning and sports nutrition.

About 250 people are employed at the Port Neal complex, which is believed to be the largest single-site collagen protein facility in the world.

Multiple beef and pork plants in the tri-state region supply raw products for Gelita, which began operations at the Port Neal site in 1968.

Gelita USA traces its roots to the Knox Gelatine Co., which was founded in 1890 in Johnstown, New York, by Charles B. Knox to provide an easier way to make gelatine. At the time, workers spent hours making the products from soup bones. Charles Knox introduced a convenient form of gelatine -- granulated for easy mixing.

In 1972, the T.J. Lipton Co. bought Kind & Knox from the Knox family. In 1992, DGF Stoess AG purchased Kind & Knox Gelatine Inc. from T.J. Lipton. Kind & Knox adopted the Gelita name in 2004.

In addition to the Port Neal site, Gelita operates a facility in Calumet City, Illinois. With its global headquarters in Eberbach, Germany, Gelita operates 21 production sites on five continents: North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia.