Deli Star Corporation, an industry leader in cooked protein manufacturing and culinary innovation, has executed agreements to build out a new production facility in the Villa Lighting Building located at 3049 Chouteau Avenue in St. Louis, Missouri. The relocation and rebuilding efforts are the result of a fire that destroyed the company’s Fayetteville, Illinois, plant January 11, 2021.
Deli Star is working with DCM Group, Ficon Construction and Answers, Inc., all St. Louis-based companies, on site design, engineering and build-out for the 104,080 square-foot space. The company will build out in the existing LEED-certified structure for the fastest-to-market option to serve its customers. A majority of the space – 94,080 square feet – is dedicated for production. Approximately 10,000 square feet is office space on the second floor that is already complete and ready to move in. The rebuild is expected to be completed in early 2022.
“We are thrilled to announce our plans for Deli Star’s next chapter,” said Deli Star CEO Justin Siegel. “After an extensive site selection process, we determined St. Louis is the ideal place for our new production facility. The city of St. Louis provides the best in the country from a supply and logistics standpoint. Additionally, by locating our plant right down the street from our new Food Discovery Center in the city’s growing innovation corridor, we can more efficiently and effectively drive innovation and supply in our business.”
“We have learned that what we have built at Deli Star, including our cutting-edge science and processes – transcend any specific space. We carry our 34-year history into a new facility with optimism,” said Dr. Dan Siegel, Deli Star Founder and Chairman of the Board. “Starting from the ground up with plant design has allowed Justin and his team to assess and enhance what Deli Star already does well. We are excited to serve our customers better and more efficiently than ever.”
Deli Star’s new plant will include industry-best equipment and production-line layouts to efficiently deliver safe, quality proteins. The new location is two miles from Deli Star’s Food Discovery Center at City Foundry STL. The proximity will allow Deli Star to easily service customers from ideation to scale-up and through to production. Deli Star’s new plant will be USDA, FDA, HACCP, SQF 9.0, customer audit-centric, and organic certified.
“We are excited to welcome Deli Star Corporation to Missouri,” Governor Mike Parson said. “Deli Star will bring nearly $100 million in investment to our state and create nearly 500 new jobs in the St. Louis region. Missouri is a great place for food sector companies like Deli Star to find success, and we look forward to seeing this company grow in our state and provide new opportunities for Missourians.”
Ameren Missouri, City of St. Louis, Greater St. Louis, Inc., Missouri Department of Economic Development, Missouri Development Finance Board, Missouri Partnership, Spire, St. Louis Economic Development Partnership, and St. Louis Development Corporation worked in partnership to bring Deli Star to Missouri.
“We were very fortunate to work with our economic development partners to help bring Deli Star to Missouri, and keep it in the greater St. Louis region,” said Subash Alias, Missouri Partnership CEO. “Deli Star was approached by numerous states and communities as it began looking for a location to rebuild its headquarters. The fact that we were able to keep it in the region is a testament to the strengths of both our workforce, and our overall business climate. We have had a lot of interest by food processing companies here in Missouri. I look forward to seeing Deli Star Corporation thrive here in our state.”
Sources: Deli Star Corp., Missouri Partnership
