Universal Corporation announces expansion at Shank’s Extracts

As part of this multi-year project, Shank’s Extracts will expand its facilities to support current and future growth

Universal Corporation announced an approximately $30 million expansion project at its subsidiary Shank’s Extracts, LLC, a speciality ingredient, flavours and botanical extracts company, headquartered in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  As part of this multi-year project, Shank’s Extracts will expand its facilities to support current and future growth needs for additional liquid and dry manufacturing, packaging, and refrigerated storage. The project also includes installing other manufacturing capabilities to serve its customers better. “We are excited to announce this expansion in our facilities at Shank’s Extracts that will enable us to enhance and expand the product offerings of our plant-based ingredients platform,” stated George C. Freeman, III, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Universal Corporation.

Universal expressed appreciation for the support of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) and the City of Lancaster for their coordination and support of this project. “Shank’s Extracts has a long and impressive history in Lancaster County, and DCED is proud to have worked with the company to ensure they continue to grow right here in Pennsylvania,” said Rick Siger DCED Secretary. “The Commonwealth has a lot to offer to food manufacturers, from our strategic location to our dedicated and skilled workforce.”

Universal Corporation, headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, is a global business-to-business agri-products supplier to consumer product manufacturers, operating in over 30 countries on five continents.  We strive to be the supplier of choice for our customers by leveraging our farmer base, our commitment to a sustainable supply chain, and our ability to provide high-quality, customized, traceable, value-added agri-products essential for our customers’ requirements.  We find innovative solutions to serve our customers and have been meeting their agri-product needs for more than 100 years.  Since our founding in 1918, our principal focus has been tobacco, and we are the leading global leaf tobacco supplier. Through our plant-based ingredients platform, we provide a variety of value-added manufacturing processes to produce high-quality, speciality vegetable- and fruit-based ingredients as well as botanical extracts and flavourings for the food and beverage end markets.

As part of this multi-year project, Shank's