Richelieu Foods, Inc., Braintree, Mass., announced plans to open a 115,000-square-foot, food-grade manufacturing plant in Wheeling, Ill.

“We are very excited to announce this expansion and for the capacity it will add to our manufacturing network,” says Tim O’Connor, president and CEO. “When the site is fully operational, it will significantly increase our frozen pizza and dressings capabilities to a level required to support the growth of our customers. We believe this major step to achieving our vision of becoming the premier supplier of private label pizza, dressings and sauces in the eyes of our customers, suppliers, employees and communities.”

Richelieu Foods evaluated several locations nationwide, but decided on the Wheeling location due to its geographic location, superior infrastructure and strong labor market, O’Connor says.

The plant is expected to be fully operational in the second half of 2016 and employ up to 125 people over the next 12 months.