HARRISBURG, PA. — Tram Bar Co-Packing L.L.C. has announced plans to build a new 20,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Allegheny Township in Blair county, Pa. The $5.1 million facility will be used to make energy bars for Jackson, Wyo.-based Kate’s Real Food.
While the facility initially will be used to produce Kate’s Real Food’s full line of hand-rolled, organic energy bars, Tram Bar also plans to market its services to other companies who want to hire a co-packer to produce similar products.
Kate’s Real Food’s signature energy bar, the Tram Bar, was produced by founder Kate Schade as fuel for days skiing from the Jackson Hole Aerial Tram located near her home in Wyoming. With the new facility in the Altoona area the company said it hopes to be able to produce millions of additional bars per year to meet the growing need for distribution to large grocery chains, Amazon, specialty stores, ski areas, convenience stores, bicycle shops and for sale from its web site at katesrealfood.com.
“The biggest obstacle that we face at Kate’s is our limited production facility located in Victor, Idaho,” said Bruce Thaler, co-owner of Kate’s Real Foods. “We can only produce a limited number of bars at that location annually. With our expansion into the grocery store market through The Touch Agency and other venues we will need to produce millions of bars annually. This move will expand our production and improve the Blair county economy. The Governor’s Action Team has been great to work with on this project.”
Tram Bar received a funding proposal from the Department of Community and Economic Development for a $75,000 Pennsylvania First Grant, $90,000 in Job Creation Tax Credits to be distributed upon the creation of new jobs, and $11,700 in WEDnetPA funding to support worker training. The company also was encouraged to apply for up to $2,650,000 in low-interest loans through the Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority.