The $90 million project is one of the largest frozen storage facilities of its kind in the United States
NewCold, the Netherlands-based specialist in automated cold storage, celebrated the grand opening of its fully automated cold storage facility on September 30, 2019. The $90 million, 180,000-square-foot facility in Burley, Idaho is one of the largest cold storage warehouses in the nation.
“We are proud to have successfully developed and started up this large-scale state of the art automated cold storage warehouses in a relatively short period of time,” said NewCold U.S. Director Jonas Swarttouw. “Teamwork between all the experts at McCain Foods, our suppliers, the local community and our own team at NewCold have been the key to this achievement. We look forward to a long-term partnership with McCain and the Southern Idaho community.”
NewCold uses leading-edge technology to automatically move and store products in the “dark” high-bay warehouse, storing foods at -5 degrees Fahrenheit, with oxygen levels lowered to 16.5 percent for fire prevention. This allows for a more energy-efficient and food-safe alternative compared to conventional cold storage solutions. To ensure an efficient inbound, storage, order fulfillment and outbound process, NewCold’s Burley location employs 100, including managers, planners, operators, maintenance workers, drivers and forklift operators.
“This has been a great addition to Burley and the region, bringing us into the realm of high-tech logistics and warehousing,” said Burley Economic Development Director, Doug Manning. “NewCold is an outstanding company that has had a positive effect on our community and has been wonderful to work with throughout the entire process.”
The Burley location largely supports the logistics needs of McCain Foods, the world’s largest manufacturer of frozen French fries and potato specialties. McCain Foods recently completed a $200 million processing plant expansion in Burley.
