For Immediate
Release: November 15, 2007
Contact:
Warren Hart, AICP, Director
Greene County Dept. of Planning and Economic Development
411 Main Street
Catskill, NY 12414
www.greeneeconomicdevelopment.com
business@discovergreene.com
Phone: (518) 719-3290
Fax: (518) 719-3789
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Greene County Officially Welcomes
New Gourmet Food Processor
Wolfgang B. Gourmet Foods Expects to Expand,
Create New Jobs in Coming Years
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CATSKILL, New York (November 15, 2007) – Greene County rolled out the welcome mat for Wolfgang B. Gourmet Foods in an official ribbon-cutting ceremony today at the company's new facility here. The manufacturer of refrigerated sauces and salsas for the specialty food market moved its business from Saugerties to Catskill this summer after renovating a long-vacant building on Cauterskill Road with the help of a low-interest Quantum Fund loan from Greene County.
The gourmet food company invested nearly $600,000 to renovate the 6,000-square-foot building to meet strict Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and client standards for the preparation of its fresh, all-natural foods, according to Wolfgang Brandl, the company's founder and resident of Catskill since 2002. The $160,000 Quantum Fund loan, as well as a $200,000 loan from the Bank of Greene County, was critical to relocating the business and getting the project done, Mr. Brandl noted.
The company, which has been operational at the new site since mid-August, now employs about a dozen people at the facility, including two recent local hires. “We expect to hire more new employees as our business continues to expand and we get more new customers,” Mr. Brandl said.
“We welcome Wolfgang B. Gourmet Foods to Greene County,” said Wayne C. Speenburgh, Chairman of the Greene County Legislature. “Small businesses like this are ones that can grow into big businesses over time, creating more and more good jobs for our residents.”
“Entrepreneurial businesses are the fastest growing sector of America's economy
and are one of the backbones of Greene County's economy,” noted Karen Deyo, Chairperson of the Government Operations Committee of the Greene County Legislature. “We are delighted to help a Hudson Valley company establish roots here,” she added.
“Food processing fits perfectly with the county's targeted industry strategy,”
Warren Hart, Director of Greene County Planning and Economic Development, commented. “It has been exciting to watch the transformation of an empty building as it has come back to life with workers and it is especially rewarding to have a Catskill resident bring his business back to the community.”
“It has been wonderful coming home to Catskill,” Mr. Brandl said. “Everyone has been so helpful and there has been such an outpouring of support. It's been a phenomenal welcome. We have not had a single problem and that makes it easy to keep expanding your business and adding more new jobs,” he added.
To ready the building for move-in, the company gutted it to an empty shell and then rebuilt the interior as a state-of-the-art food processing facility. The building now has a drop ceiling, gleaming white walls that are spray washed and sanitized each night, sophisticated draining and cooling systems, and an elaborate exhaust system to handle the 1,200 pounds of onions caramelized at the facility each day. The company also installed a new system for pumping the sauces and salsas directly from processing to the packaging machines.
“We have had two food audits by two different customers since we moved into our new facility and have passed both with high marks,” Mr. Brandl said. “Our customers love the Catskill facility and that's certainly good for business.”
Wolfgang B. Gourmet Foods specializes in producing refrigerated pasta sauces that are distributed throughout metropolitan New York, Maine and Florida. The majority of its work is in “private label” for specialty markets and supermarket chains that need an external, high-quality production resource, but want to present the product under their own name, Mr. Brandl explained. Among its clients are Dean and DeLuca, Gourmet Garage, Grace's Marketplace, Fairways, The Amish Markets, Raffetto's and more locally, Adams Fairacre Farms. Supermarket customers include Hannaford Foods, Kash and Karry, and Wegman's.
In addition to its pasta sauces, the company makes a line of fresh sauces and salsas. The firm also produces a line of Indian simmer sauces for Curried Flavors, a New York City based company with distribution nationwide. A new chutney line and dressings for a restaurant franchise are also in the works.
For more information on Greene County Planning and Economic Development, call (518) 719-3290 or visit www.greeneeconomicdevelopment.com.
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