More than 100 food processing companies have opened or expanded operations in Georgia in the past eight years, and have invested more than $1.4 billion in the state. Companies are taking advantage of the top-ranked, cost-free Georgia Quick Start workforce training program, booming population, expanding agricultural sector, and world-class agribusiness research. Georgia also provides companies a close proximity to raw materials, robust water infrastructure and high-growth consumer markets.
In the past 20 years, the growth in Georgia’s food processing industry has outpaced the national rate, both in employment and value of shipments. Food processing is Georgia’s leading manufacturing industry, employing 61,000 Georgia residents, and contributing $10.65 billion to the state's gross domestic product (GDP) (Sources: Georgia Department of Labor - 2010, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis-2009).
Georgia is home to leading companies that specialize in meat products, beverages, fruits, vegetables and bakery products. Georgia is also home to the international headquarters of the Coca-Cola Company, Coca-Cola Enterprises®, and Flowers Foods. Coca-Cola® is the most recognizable brand in the world. The company established its roots in Georgia in 1886 and is still Georgia’s top employer in the food and beverage manufacturing industry. Thirty-eight of the country’s top 100 food processing companies have operations in Georgia.
A Productive Work Force
Georgia’s work force is highly skilled and productive. Georgia’s work force is highly skilled and productive. Area Development’s fall 2011 site selection consultant survey ranked Georgia #1 in the labor cli mate category, #1 specifically for labor availability and #1 for its workforce development program. GDP is up for Georgia $2 million and 19% from 2008.
Also of importance, Georgia is a right to work state and had the second lowest union membership rate in the U.S. in 2010 at 4.0 percent of the employed compared to the U.S. average of 11.9 percent.
Georgia’s extensive network of technical colleges, backed by the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) and the state's nationally recognized Quick Start training program help ensure that food processing operations have the level of workers needed to be successful. Food processors in Georgia can rely on Quick Start’s broad experience in food manufacturing technologies.
Job-specific training for the food industry includes:
Superior Distribution Infrastructure
Savannah is the fastest-growing container port and the fourth-largest in the nation. It was the second busiest U.S. container port for the export of American goods by tonnage in FY2011, handling 8.7 percent of U.S. containerized cargo volume and 12.5 percent of all U.S. containerized exports. On any given week, a combined 5.9 million tons of freight move across Georgia’s 1,200 miles of interstate highways and 20,000 miles of federal and state highways. Georgia has four major interstates, I-75, I-85, I-20 and I-95.
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Also, 80 percent of the nation’s consumer markets are within a two-day drive time. With 4,700 miles of rail, Georgia has the most extensive rail system and largest intermodal hub in the Southeast. Georgia is served by two Class I railroads and 24 short-line companies. CSX and Norfolk Southern each operate more than 80 freight trains in and out of Atlanta daily. Georgia is home to two international airports including the world's busiest in Atlanta (Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International) and Savannah (Savannah Airport).
Innovation and Technology Research
Georgia’s food processors are supported by a variety of research and technology groups
around the state. The state’s world class colleges and universities (University System of Georgia) provide state-of-the-art facilities and research dollars that make possible ground-breaking food industry technology development.
Two of Georgia’s leading universities, the University of eorgia and The Georgia Institute of Technology, have research facilities and innovation teams that provide exceptional resources for food processing and machinery companies.
The University of Georgia’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences has
several programs educating students in the field of food processing:
• The Center for Food Safety works closely with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) and leads the industry in developing techniques to detect,
control, and eliminate disease causing micro-organisms and toxins www.ugacfs.org
• The Food Product Innovation and Commercialization Center, located in Griffin,
assists companies in the efficient and economical development of new products,
processes, packaging and production trials. www.caes.uga.edu/center/foodpic
The Georgia Institute of Technology’s Research Institute is the largest unit of the university
providing world class applied and basic research and expertise in solving industry
problems.
• The Food Processing Technology Division (FPTD) develops innovative technologies
for processing efficiency and operational enhancement. FPTD partners with industry
professionals on projects involving advanced robotics and automation, imaging and
sensing, environmental, energy, and worker and food safety technologies.
www.foodtech.gatech.edu
• Since Since 1973, the Georgia Tech Agricultural Research Program (ATRP) has
provided innovative engineering research and development for the poultry industry in
particular and the food-processing industry at large. The program’s outreach
activities focus on issues and challenges that affect the industry
today.
A sampling of recent successful
innovations include:
Other supporting organizations include the University of Georgia's Poultry Science Extension and Outreach and Food Science Extension and Outreach; and the Georgia Center of Innovation for Agribusiness.
Georgia is home to more than 100 food industry-related associations and trade organizations who stand ready to help companies achieve success.
Contact
To learn more, please contact Jonathan Lupo at 404-962-4826 or jlupo@georgia.org.
Recent industry news:
Related Sites:
Center for Agribusiness and Economic Development (University of Georgia)
Georgia Food Industry Association
Georgia Peanut Commission
United Fresh Produce Association
2011 Georgia Power Food Processing Study (PDF)