Trident Seafoods, the largest vertically integrated seafood harvesting and processing company in North America, has officially opened a $40 million packing plant and R&D center in Carrollton, Georgia. The upgraded facility, which was formerly owned and operated by Chiquita, is dedicated to producing value-added frozen seafood products including battered, glazed, breaded, fried and oven-ready fare.
Occupying 81 acres situated 47miles southwest of Atlanta in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, the operation features 88,000 square feet of manufacturing space and 67,000 square feet of cold storage capacity and 15 truck bays, in addition to 18,000 square feet of office quarters and an additional 20,000 square feet of support area.
“Purchasing, modernizing and expanding the existing processing plant in Carrollton to accommodate our needs was a good fit for us, and we have faith that it will be a good fit for Carrollton,” said Joe Bundrant, chief executive officer of Seattle, Washington-headquartered Trident Seafoods. “We want to grow our business in the Eastern United States, and Carrollton is situated close to our customers. The site offered us the additional space we needed to build a modern cold storage and distribution center. The transportation infrastructure allows us to source raw materials and to deliver our finished products to important markets in a timely fashion.”
When Trident’s Georgia facility is fully operational, it is expected to employ more than 170 people from the greater Carrollton area.
About Trident Seafoods
Founded in 1973, Trident Seafoods catches and processes wild Alaska salmon, cod, crab and pollock, and distributes a wide selection of fish and shellfish products to retail and foodservice customers. The company operates a fleet of more than 30 vessels, including floating processors, catcher-processors, fishing boats and support vessels. Its onshore facilities include processing plants in a dozen US coastal communities from Newport, Oregon, to Akutan, Alaska.
