Flowers Foods, the Georgia-based breads and snacks maker that owns Philadelphia's Tasty Baking Co., may be planning to open a new bread bakery with access to the eastern Pennsylvania market, according to food-industry analysts at Janney Capital Markets. Flowers apparently considered buying a plant in the area, and was also said to be talking about building a new facility.

The Tastykake doughnut and honey buns frying plant in Oxford, Pa., originally built by Keebler, has room "to double its footprint," and has access to railroads and a good labor market in nearby Cecil County, Md., and southern Lancaster County. Flowers’ spokesman Keith Hancock says, "The Pennsylvania market is a priority for Flowers Foods. Feasibility studies are currently underway to determine the best alternative for adding capacity to support our sales plans for the Mid-Atlantic region."

According to the analyst report, sales of Tastykake products are up under Flowers management, thanks in part to additional sales from Flowers' bread truck routes. The Philadelphia plant is operating with "steady growth" and better margins, reports say.

Source: www.philly.com