HARIBO of America plans to break ground on its first North American plant in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin in September.

The Pleasant Prairie Plan Commission conditionally approved the final site and operational plans for Phase 1 of the facility on May 11. Construction is expected to begin following the groundbreaking.

The campus development will be completed in phases on 136.8 acres of property located at the southwest corner of 120th Avenue (West Frontage Road) and CTH C (Wilmot Road) in the Prairie Highlands Corporate Park. The facility will be the company's first-ever North American plant.

Phase 1 construction will include a 487,400-sq.-ft. production building with warehouse and administrative office spaces. The facility will have a three-story production area with an attached two-story building that will have offices for administrative work. An 87,866-sq.-ft., one-story warehouse building will connect at ground level to the production building by a 475-ft. passageway. Also, small utility buildings will be constructed, along with a gatehouse for truck traffic. Groundbreaking is anticipated to take place September 2020 with construction following thereafter.

“We’re reaching our 100th Anniversary at HARIBO this year, and we’re excited to celebrate that with continued progress on our first U.S. factory,” said Arndt Ruesges, HARIBO chief production officer. “We’re thrilled with reaching each milestone and are proud to partner with the Village of Pleasant Prairie to make that happen. We founded our business on the principle of quality and inspiring moments of joy through our treats, and our new factory will help us continue that tradition and produce gummies for our consumers for generations to come.”

Upon completion of Phase 1, there may be up to 385 full-time employees working in the production facility.The facility will operate on three shifts, Monday through Friday. The production facility plans to be operational 24 hours for manufacturing, and the warehouse intends to operate from 8 a.m. to 5. p.m.