On Thursday, Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling attended a ceremony in Rockingham County to announce the expansion of The WhiteWave Foods Company’s Mount Crawford plant. The company plans to add a warehouse facility and machinery through a $69.8 million investment, creating 36 new jobs.

WhiteWave Foods is a leading producer of premium food and beverage products. This expansion will allow the company to meet growing demand for its Silk®, Horizon Organic®, International Delight® and LAND O LAKES® products, as well as improve plant efficiency.

The Mount Crawford plant has successfully operated in Virginia for 25 years and currently employs more than 400 skilled workers.

Virginia successfully competed against Texas for this project and was chosen for its strategic East Coast location and world-class workforce.

The company has invested more than $190 million in the Mount Crawford plant since the year 2000.

This expansion adds to the thriving food and beverage industry across the Shenandoah Valley region, which includes McKee Foods, Hershey Foods, Perdue, MillerCoors, and recently announced Shamrock Farms.

Food and beverage companies have invested more than $285 million and created 608 jobs in Virginia so far in 2013. These companies continue to choose the Commonwealth due to its premier location, transportation network, workforce, and low-cost operating environment.

To learn why more than 550 food and beverage companies have established operations in the Commonwealth, click here.

Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling (center right) joins company and government officials at the WhiteWave Foods ribbon-cutting ceremony in Rockingham County, Va.