Less than two years after announcing it would construct a major expansion to its manufacturing site in Orange County, the Japanese candy company Morinaga held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday to celebrate its opening and preparation to create more and more fruity Hi-Chew candy.
Dozens of Morinaga employees, North Carolina officials, Orange County leaders and more gathered under a white tent Tuesday afternoon alongside four, new gigantic tanks of glucose attached to the expansion of Morinaga’s candy-making facility. Attendees got to try some of the 40 different Hi-Chew flavors offered in the United States, lining up at a makeshift candy shop to grab some of the square fruit chews and pose at a photo booth.
Since opening its sole manufacturing plant outside Asia in Mebane in 2015, Morinaga reports its U.S. sales have steadily grown. The Orange County site makes every one of those pieces of Hi-Chew, spitting out roughly 7 million every 24 hours – and the expansion will allow Morinaga to double that output.
Among the many Japanese dignitaries there on Tuesday was Morinaga & Company President and COO Shinya Mori. He expressed his “deepest gratitude” for the friendship and partnership with North Carolina and said he is confident the candy giant will “build a great future together” with this community in Orange County. Already, Mori added, it has helped fuel the U.S. demand for Hi-Chew.
Morinaga President and COO Shinya Mori address the crowd gathered for Tuesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony in Mebane. (Photo by Brighton McConnell/Chapel Hill Media Group.)
“This new production facility is the engine that will bring the Morinaga Group to the next stage. Every product made here will strengthen our presence in the market. To keep winning, we must maintain our high quality standard. While we increase quantity, we will never compromise on quality. I ask all of you to keep this standard.”
Also in attendance was North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein. Since succeeding Roy Cooper in office, Stein has continued the state’s strong business relationship with Japan, as the country continues to make up 45% of all foreign investment in North Carolina. The governor highlighted Morinaga as just one example of the 250 Japanese companies with 600 locations across the state, and the Mebane site’s expansion will add 204 new jobs to the 36,000 thousand Japan-paid employees and half a million North Carolinians in the manufacturing workforce.
Stein took a trip to Tokyo in October to visit with some of those Japanese business leaders. He told the gathered crowd on Tuesday he was struck by just how frequently he saw not only Hi-Chew, but Morinaga’s dozens of other candy options in stores.
“Right now, Hi-Chew is the product that’s really penetrated the United States [market],” said Stein, before admitting the cherry chews are his favorite flavor. “But they’ve got ice creams, they’ve got candy bars… I’m hoping that they really like it here in North Carolina so much that when they’re ready to bring the new products to market, they can make them right here.”
Orange County Economic Development Director Steve Brantley was on hand for the ceremony alongside several other county government officials and staff. Having helped recruit Morinaga to the community back in 2012, he said both the local government and business were hopeful that the initial plant would be just the start of its presence in Mebane. After weathering COVID-19 and seeing record sales in North America, Brantley said that vision has come to fruition and it becomes the latest example of Orange County successfully recruiting a manufacturer to join the community.
“With this expansion completed,” Brantley told Chapelboro, “Orange County will have one of its largest employers, with almost 400 people, and a tax base of almost $160 million dollars for everything that’s on the ground at the moment. We’re trying to get more of that to diversify the county’s economy and job opportunities for folks in Orange County.
“It’s very fortunate to have an international company, and even a Japanese industry,” he added of Morinaga. “Because, as you’ve seen [here today], the caliber of their leadership and their concern for their employees is second to none – and they make a really cool product.”
With construction complete, Morinaga remains on track for bringing the facility online. The $136 million investment is projected to staff and begin operating in the new plant in January 2027.
Featured photo by Brighton McConnell/Chapel Hill Media Group.
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Morinaga Celebrates Completed Mebane Expansion and ‘Sweet Partnership’ With North Carolina, Orange County Chapelboro.com.
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