The Canadian company is also installing a new aseptic line at its Pacific Fruit Processors subsidiary (within its SunOpta Fruit Group) with an annual output of 30m pounds of product per year.
Target applications for the company’s new processing line include fruit bases for yogurts, smoothies, fruit toppings and fruit service products in both organic and conventional formats.
Pacific Fruit Processors president, Michael Jacobs, said: “We have been near capacity at times over the past several years on aseptic processing.
“The new equipment will increase capacity, improve our throughput and also further enhance product quality and flexibility for our customers. We expect to fill the new capacity over the next 12 to 18 months.”
SunOpta said in a statement: “The additional capacity will allow the fruit group to pursue a number of potential new applications and customers, with revenue potential in excess of $20m [€15.3m] in this value-added product category.”
Reflecting on its Californian pouch line investment, SunOpta said that the market for flexible, re-sealable pouches was rapidly expanding in the US. “The…pouch market is well-established in Europe and Asia, and is rapidly expanding into the North American market,” the firm said.
SunOpta said its two new filling lines would have an estimated annual capacity of around 36m pouches, and the company said it had entered into agreement for the majority of this capacity.
The company said it also planned to open a new facility in Pennsylvania, to accommodate two more lines and house additional fruit snack production “as current operations reach capacity”.
Asked about the growing popularity of pouches, a spokeswoman told FoodProductionDaily.com: “The re-sealable pouches are popular due to the re-sealable features, portability and anti-choke cap. The pouches were launched in Europe before North America and this is the likely reason for the North American market being behind Europe. “
Pouches were currently used for a wide range of applications – including baby food and beverages – and the spokeswoman said that pouches would “likely be expanded to a wide range of products, including fruit purees, fruit snacks, sauces, etc.”.
SunOpta said it had also witnessed strong demand for fruit ingredients over the past few years, and asked why the sector had remained resilient throughout the recession, the spokeswoman said:
“Demand for fruit ingredients has been driven by food manufacturers and food service providers adding fruits to many products/product offerings due to the health benefits, i.e. the growth of smoothies at food service, growth of Greek yogurts, etc.”