NEW YORK — Lavazza North America, part of global Italian coffee company Lavazza Group, has begun construction on its first US roasting and packing plant. The new plant, which is an expansion of Lavazza’s facility in West Chester, Pa., is slated to open in October and will serve the US market.
Lavazza said it will add 1,000 square feet to the 18,000-square-foot facility in West Chester to accommodate new capabilities to produce roasted and ground coffee.
“North America continues to be a strategic growth market for Lavazza Group, and opening this facility in the United States will sharpen our competitive edge,†said Davide Riboni, president and chief executive officer BU Americas for Lavazza. “We will more efficiently service our current customers and offer incentives to attract new ones.â€
Until now, all Lavazza roasted and ground coffee for the US market was sourced from Italy. The new plant will position Lavazza to reduce its carbon footprint through reduced shipping, furthering the company’s goal to completely neutralize its carbon footprint by the end of 2030.
The West Chester facility is a LEED Gold site, is zero landfill, and is the first site in the Lavazza Group to achieve ISO 45001 certification, the company said.
Established in 1895 in Turin, Italy, Lavazza has been owned by the Lavazza family for four generations.
“This is a very important step for the Lavazza Group and for its future development in the United States, a country that has always been of fundamental importance to us,†said Eleuterio Quagliarini, group chief operations officer. “In addition, the investment is made within a production facility that we acquired a few years ago, which immediately proved to be the ideal context for developing this new Lavazza reality in the United States, principally thanks to the passion and expertise of the people who work there.â€
Lavazza Group currently has nine production plants in six countries (three in Italy along with one each in France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and India).
