Chesterfield VA – Governor Timothy M. Kaine today announced that Sabra Dipping Company will open a state-of-the-art food manufacturing plant in Chesterfield County, and bring new jobs to the area. The plant will make the award-winning Sabra branded dips and spreads, including the country’s best-selling Sabra hummus and vegetable dips. Current projections estimate 260 new jobs will result from the facility, beginning in mid 2010. Virginia successfully competed against two other states for the project.

“As the Sabra brand grows, we are confident the company will find great success in Virginia,” Governor Kaine said. “We are proud to host the top-selling hummus brand in the country as it prepares for additional accelerated growth in an expanding industry. The positive business climate in the Commonwealth helped Sabra make the decision that Chesterfield County is the right fit for a new plant.”

“In recent years, Sabra has emerged as a top brand in the growing dips category,” said Ronen Zohar, Chief Executive Officer for Sabra Dipping Company. “We are projecting growth and planning exciting innovation. We are very optimistic about our company’s plans for Chesterfield County and look forward to breaking ground and settling into the community.”

Sabra Dipping Company, LLC of Astoria, New York, makes a wide range of refrigerated dips and spreads using fresh herbs and spices, and authentic recipes and healthy vegetables. All of the products are certified kosher and vegetarian and available across the nation. With more than 50 percent growth in the past 52 weeks, Sabra is leading its category according to recent IRI reports.

Sabra Dipping Company was formed as a U.S./Canadian joint venture between Strauss Group and PepsiCo. The Sabra joint venture draws on both Strauss Group and Frito-Lay North America’s marketplace expertise to continue building this growing business. Frito-Lay is a business unit of PepsiCo. This will be the first new facility built since the formation of the Sabra Dipping Company joint venture.

Strauss Group, Israel’s second largest food and beverage Group, has over the past few years become an international corporation with a steadily growing part of its business conducted outside of Israel. The Group employs more then 11,000 people and operates in nineteen countries. Over the last five years, the Group has consistently achieved double-digit growth, doubling its business in that period and generating NIS 6 billion (around $1.7 billion) in turnover at the end of 2007, of which 45 percent originated in international activities. The Group focuses on key consumption trends in the food industry via three business divisions: Health & Wellness, Fun & Indulgence, and Coffee.

(YWN Desk – NYC)