Celebrating a Dedication to Frozen Pizza

Officials gathered to celebrate a ribbon-cutting and grand-opening ceremony at what is now the tallest building in Salina, a new 140,000-square-foot distribution center at the CJ Schwan’s pizza facility.

Among those who gathered were:

• Laura Kelly – Kansas Governor
• Roger Marshall – U.S. Senator from Kansas
• Tracey Mann – U.S. House of Representatives, Kansas
• Brian Schiegg – CEO of CJ Schwan’s

The project expansion, first announced in November 2022, has been nearly three -years in the making. Kansas Governor Laura Kelly said the $600 million investment is not only good for Salina, but good for all of Kansas. The Kansas Deparment of Transportation and Kansas Department of Commerce both played key roles.

CJ Schwan’s CEO Brian Schiegg told KSAL News this project now makes 80 expansions since the facility first started manufacturing frozen pizza in Salina in 1970.

Schiegg noted that as the company still continues to grow, there is plenty of room for even more expansion in Salina.

The new distribution center adds about 140,000 square feet of space to the company’s pizza production facility in Salina. This brings the total distribution center space on the CJ Schwan’s Salina campus to about 245,000 square feet. The entire campus, with manufacturing and distribution space included, exceeds 1 million square feet.

Kansas Senator Jerry Moran said “Schwan’s continued investment in Salina is a testament to the work ethic and talent of our workforce and the value of doing business in Kansas. Schwan’s new facility will serve as a central hub, helping deliver products made right here in Kansas to communities across the nation. I am pleased to celebrate this milestone and the positive impact it will have on the future of Salina and our state.”

Between the new distribution center and the 2023 opening of a 400,000-square-foot pizza manufacturing expansion, approximately 225 new jobs were created.

The new distribution center is the tallest building in Salina at 144 feet, more than 14 stories. It has 12 loading docks, a 38,000-pallet-position racking system with three automated pallet cranes, and office space.

The new facility serves as a central storage and distribution hub for products made by CJ Schwan’s Salina production facilities as well as products made by other CJ Schwan’s facilities across the United States.

Popular retail brands that pass through the facility include Red Baron and Tony’s pizza, and bibigo foods.