Denali Ingredients, New Berlin, Wis., said it is expanding its food ingredients manufacturing capabilities with the opening of an additional 98,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in the greater Milwaukee area. The new facility, located at 16725 W. Ryerson Rd., New Berlin, Wis., marks another major investment Denali is making in the industries it serves.

The facility will house a state-of-the-art commercial oven that will produce a new line of baked inclusions, including brownie and cheesecake pieces that are popular in ice cream and other sweet treats. This expansion will also double the production space and improve the production flow for the company’s current extruded doughs, bits, flakes and bark products, Denali said.

During the design phase, due consideration was given to key operational improvements. The facility will triple Denali’s frozen storage capacity to accommodate expanded product offerings. The company said its design also includes a focus on food quality and safety, with modern sanitation equipment, isolated production spaces and a quality control lab outfitted with updated testing equipment. Environmental impact improvements include the use of LED lights, high-efficiency boilers, water heaters and air handling systems, as well as a robust recycling program.        

“Adding a new capability — baked inclusions — expands our portfolio of products for our customers,” said Neal Glaeser, president of Denali Ingredients. “This is part of fulfilling our long-term vision, which is to become the go-to ingredients supplier. This expansion of our portfolio, along with our emphasis on hands-on customer collaboration, provides our research and development [R&D] team a broader platform to effectively address trends in today’s complex food environment.”

Denali Ingredients opened its R&D Innovation Center three years ago to provide increased space for research and development and a small-scale pilot plant for product testing.

“Our growth has been fueled by investments in people and facilities,” said Glaeser.