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Anaheim plant reflects co-packer's investments
TO CONTINUALLY IMPROVE ITS CAPABILITIES AS A CONTRACT PACKAGER, Nor-Cal Beverage Co. Inc., Sacramento, Calif., has made investments exceeding $100 million in its two facilities in California. The improvements have placed the third-generation family-owned company on track to produce 45 million cases of product in 2011 for companies such as The Coca-Cola Co., Hansen's Natural and Ferolito, Vultaggio & Sons.
Both of Nor-Cal's plants are working toward FSSC 22000 certification with hot fill, cold fill, aseptic, chilled, pouch and organic capabilities. In Sacramento, Nor-Cal produces a range of juice and juice drinks, energy drinks, ready-to-drink (RTD) teas and functional beverages. The Northern California plant manufactures products on aseptic, pouch, hotfill, a 24-ounce can line, PET/glass line, combination carbonated/cold-fill/hot-fill line and a multi-size can line that has the ability to run sizes as small as 9 ounces, says Shannon Deary-Bell, president and chief executive officer of Nor-Cal.
In total, the company employs close to 600 people, with about 200 at its Anaheim plant. Similar to its continued family ownership, Nor-Cal also boasts employees with long histories.
"One of the key indicators of how happy people are is their longevity at a certain company," says Kevin Cordoza, director of engineering for Nor-Cal's Anaheim plant. "When you look at even just this facility, we have certain folks who have been here even before I was born."
Cordoza explains that Deary-Bell's father and previous Nor-Cal president, Don Deary, established a principle that the company works hard and plays hard, which means employees are always looking forward to the next out-of-work gathering.
"We all want to get together and hang out," Cordoza says. "You feel like you're working for the family, you don't feel like you're working for a corporation. It's very personal and you have a vested interest in succeeding."
Nor-Cal's Anaheim plant manufactures a range of juices, RTD teas and sports drinks in paper cartons and plastic bottles. The Anaheim location has been a food and beverage plant since the 1930s and was once owned by Bing Crosby, Deary-Bell says. At one time, the plant was surrounded by Anaheim's orange orchards and was dedicated to blending, filling, packaging and storing juice products.
In the 1930s, the Anaheim facility transitioned to a coffee...